Question

What are the three factors that affect the direction of wind flow?

Answer 1

Hint: The movement of air in any direction is called wind.The speed of winds very from calm to very high speed like hurricanes. Winds flow from an area of high pressure to an area of high pressure.

Complete answer: The restlessness of the atmosphere is understood from winds. The factors that affect the direction of wind flow are:
1. Atmospheric Pressure: One of the main factors of wind flow is atmospheric pressure which is the weight of the overlying air column at any given point.. As warm air ascends, atmospheric pressure is caused due to solar heating. As the warmer air ascends, cooler air descends which creates an area of high pressure. Winds usually flow from an area of high to low pressure. The greater the difference in the pressure the faster the wind moves.
2. Coriolis effect: Since the earth rotates on its axis, the Coriolis effect pushes the circulating wind towards the right. It is deflected towards the left in the southern hemisphere.
3. Topography: Topography includes barriers like hills and mountains that force wind up and above their slopes. As air rises up it becomes cool. Cooler air holds less moisture. As the air gets cooler,it condenses into rain or snow. This leads to creating an effect called the rainshadow area or the leeward effect. In these areas air contains very less moisture.

Note: The increase in the speed of wind can have adverse effects on the environment. It degrades the habitat of the wildlife,fish and plants. It also destroys homes of people and causes damage to property.