Wondering how do winds start, tune in for the answer
How do winds start and why do they stop? asks Georgina from the Isle of Wight.
You may listen to this programme NOW on Demand on the BBC Discovery Page which is available until Tuesday the 25th of October. It will also be broadcast on Sunday the 23rd of October in Phuket at 8:30 AM on 91.5 FM and 102.5 FM and Online via the Internet radio portals.
What’s more, listener Chris Elshaw is surprised we get strong winds at all: why doesn’t air just move smoothly between areas of high and low pressure?
Why and how do winds start we get sudden gusts and violent storms.
To tackle this breezy mystery, our curious duo don their anoraks and get windy with some weather experts. Dr Simon Clark, a science Youtuber and author of Firmament, convinces Adam that airflow is really about the physics of fluids, which can all be captured by some nifty maths.
The idea of pressure turns out to be key, so Hannah makes her own barometer out of a jar, a balloon and some chopsticks, and explains why a bag of crisps will expand as you walk up a mountain.
Professor Liz Bentley, Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, reveals how the dynamics of a simple sea breeze – where air over land is heated more than air over water – illustrates the basic forces driving wind of all kinds.
Then everyone gets involved to help Adam understand the tricky Coriolis effect and why the rotation of the Earth makes winds bend and storms spin.
And Professor John Turner from the British Antarctic Survey explains why the distinctive features of the coldest continent make its coastline the windiest place on earth.
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