WIND

6/7/16

C M E T,

WIND

Beaufort Scale of Wind Force

TheBeaufort scaleis anmeasure that
relateswind speedto observed conditions at sea
or on land. Its full name is theBeaufort wind
force scale. It is a measure ofwindspeedand
not offorcein the scientific senses.
The scale was devised in 1805 byFrancis
Beaufort, an Irish Royal Navyofficer, while
serving inHMSWoolwich.
The scale was made a standard for ship's log
entries on non-naval ships from the 1850s. In
1916, to accommodate the growth of steam
power, the descriptions were changed to how
the sea behaved. Today, many countries
C M E T,
have

6/7/16

WIND

Beufort Scale of Wind Force

heBeaufort scaleis anmeasure that
relateswind speedto observed conditions at sea
or on land. Its full name is theBeaufort wind
force scale. It is a measure ofwindspeedand
not offorcein the scientific senses.
The scale was devised in 1805 byFrancis
Beaufort, an Irish Royal Navyofficer, while
serving inHMSWoolwich.
The scale was made a standard for ship's log
entries on non-naval ships from the 1850s. In
1916, to accommodate the growth of steam
power, the descriptions were changed to how
the sea behaved. Today, many countries
C M E T,
have

6/7/16

WIND

Pressure Gradient Force

The change inpressuremeasured across a given
distance is called a "pressure gradient".

The pressure gradient results in a net force that

is directed fromhightolowpressure and this
force is called the "pressure gradient force".
The pressure gradient force is responsible for
triggering the initial movement of air.

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Coriolis Force

WIND

theCoriolis effectis the apparent deflection of

moving objects when the motion is described
relative to arotating reference frame. In a
reference frame with clockwise rotation, the
deflection is to the left of the motion of the
object; in one with counter-clockwise rotation,
the deflection is to the right. Although
recognized previously by others, the
mathematical expression for theCoriolis
forceappeared in an 1835 paper by French
scientistGaspard-Gustave Coriolis, in connection
with the theory ofwater wheels. Early in the
20th century, the termCoriolis forcebegan
C M E T, to be
6/7/16
used
in connection withmeteorology.

Coriolis Force

WIND

The Coriolis effect is caused by the rotation of

the Earth and theinertiaof the mass
experiencing the effect. Because the Earth
completes only one rotation per day, the Coriolis
force is quite small, and its effects generally
become noticeable only for motions occurring
over large distances and long periods of time,
such as large-scale movement of air in the
atmosphere or water in the ocean. This force
causes moving objects on the surface of the
Earth to be deflected to the right (with respect to
the direction of travel) in theNorthern
Hemisphereand to the left in theSouthern
C M E T,
6/7/16 The horizontal deflection effect is
Hemisphere.

Coriolis Force

WIND

Rather than flowing directly from areas of high

pressure to low pressure, as they would in a nonrotating system, winds and currents tend to flow
to the right of this direction north of
theequatorand to the left of this direction south
of it.

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WIND
Buys ballots Law
Buys Ballots law,the relation ofwind
directionwith the horizontal pressure distribution
named for the Dutch meteorologistC.H.D. Buys
Ballot, who first stated it in 1857. The
relationship states that in the Northern
Hemisphere a person who stands facing away
from thewindhas high pressure on the right and
low pressure on the left; in the Southern
Hemisphere, the reverse would be true.

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WIND
Buys ballots Law
Theoretically, the relationship states that the
angle between thewindand thepressure
gradientis a right angle. This is almost exactly
true in the free atmosphere, but not near the
surface. Near the ground, the angle is usually
less than 90 because of friction between the air
and the surface and the turning of the wind
toward areas of lower atmospheric pressure at
the same altitude.

6/7/16

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WIND
Buys ballots Law
Caution when applying Buys Ballot's Law
1. Near the equator: Buys Ballot's law should
not be
applied within a few degrees of the equator. This
is
because Coriolis force is negligible at the
equator and
therefore the winds blow directly across the
isobars
from HP to LP areas.
2. In the vicinity of land: The wind
experienced may
not be the free unobstructed wind.
It may
CM
E T,be
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wind

WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

There are two kinds of wind; true and
apparent. We call the wind that blows across the
land or water, the true wind. This is the wind
talked about in the weather forecast. It is the
wind we feel when we are outside at rest and not
moving.
The other kind of wind,
apparent, is the wind that is
generated by our movement in
combination with the true wind.

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

The only time there is no apparent wind is
when we are at rest and only feeling the effects
of the true wind. When we move and the wind
also moves the total wind we feel is the apparent
wind.
Stationary objects
only feel true wind
while all objects
in motion feel
apparent wind.

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

In this illustration we
have calm conditions so we
move ahead at 5 knots
producing an apparent
wind of 5 knots from
straight ahead.
No wind from our ship's
forward motion. The true
wind is 10 knots and
that's what we feel on
the ship.

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

We see the
combined effects of the
true wind and our ship's
motion forward. This
produces the apparent
wind, what we actually
feel while sailing on the
ship.
On moving vessels we
Always feel apparent
wind. Here, note the
apparent wind is stronger than the true wind (the
CM
E T,
arrow is longer) and is coming from
further

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Apparent wind is the resultant
of true wind and ship's reversed
movement (correct speed but
opposite course).
The solution of problems on true
and apparent wind involves the
application of the triangle of
forces.

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Consider a triangle OA T where,
AT is the course and speed of the vessel
OT is the direction and speed of true wind
OA is the direction & speed of apparent wind.
Knowing any two of
the above, the third
can be found by
simple construction,
somewhat similar to
radar plotting

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Worked example 1:
Course 045 speed
15 knots.
Apparent wind
100 at 20 knots.
Find the direction
and speed of true
wind.
Note: North-South
lines are to be
drawn through A
and T, never
through O.

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Worked example 2:
Course 2000 speed 14 knots. True wind 3000 at
18
knots. Find the
direction and
speed of
apparent wind.

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Worked example 3: Course 160 speed 10
knots. Direction of wind (obtained by observing
line of waves) was 270. Wind speed by
shipboard anemometer was 17 knots. What
direction and
force of wind is
to be entered
into the ship's
logbook?.

6/7/16

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WIND

TRUE AND APPARENT WIND

Worked example 4:
Course 320 speed 12 knots out in
open sea.
Wind force 4 (16 knots),
estimated by appearance of the
sea surface. Smoke from the
funnel was observed to be
blowing to 030. What entry is to
be made in the weather report
regarding wind direction and
speed?

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