Question

Distinguish between the following.
Windward side –Leeward side of the mountains.

Answer 1

Hint:
- The Northern United States and the Front Range foothills of Northern Colorado are the examples of the windward side.
- In the case of the leeward side Southern California and Mojave Desert are some of the examples.
- In India part of the Leeward side of Western Ghats is a drought prone area.

Complete step by step solution:
1. The windward side is the reference point which faces the existing wind whereas the leeward side is the one which is protected from the wind by the reference point. The reference points can be sea, islands, buildings, mountains etc.

2. The windward side provides air and precipitation to which the mountains act as barriers to the flow of air and thus it is the wetter side. On the other hand, the leeward side is the drier side. Meteorologists call this contrasting effect the ‘Orographic Effect’.

3. The windward side consists of more vegetation whereas the leeward side has less vegetation.

4. The windward side does not offer protection to the vessels from the wind but leeward sides provide better anchorage to vessels.

5. In case of windward side the air travels from a region of low valley to the foothills of the mountain range and as the air lifts up it becomes cooler as it rises more and more. This procedure is known as ‘adiabatic cooling.
In the case of the leeward side, by the time air rises up the windward side and reaches the mountains, it already loses its moisture and becomes dry. This effect is known as ‘adiabatic warming’ which reduces the possibility of rains and leads to ‘rain shadow effect’.

Note:
- The Windward side of Western Ghats experiences heavy rainfall (more than 250 cm); but as the distance from the sea rises, the volume and strength of rainfall starts to decrease.
- The Bay of Bengal Monsoon branch progresses into the eastern part of India and induces strong rainfall.
- In the case of the archipelago, the Windward Islands are upwind and the leeward islands are downwind.