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Chapter 6 -
Stormy Wind Fulfilling his Word -
From There Go the Ships
by George Shirley
Page 85
a north wind in the northern half and a southern
wind in the southern half of our globe. But this is modified or
its form changed by the motion of our earth, which at the equator
moves seventeen miles a minute towards the east, but at sixty degrees
eight and a half, and at the poles nothing. Hence, the wind, arriving
at places that move faster, "lags" behind; so the same
wind becomes a contrary wind. This is very interesting, but we can
only just look at it. When once the mariner can get into the
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"trade winds" he knows
how far he can sail with the wind in one direction.
There is a region of calms at the equator, when the north and
south trade winds unite and neutralise each other, but here heavy
rains and thunderstorms prevail.
There are periodical winds, land and sea breezes. On the coast
within the tropics a breeze sets in from the sea; at first a mere
"breathing," but gradually increasing toward the middle
of the day to a "stiff breeze," after which, toward
evening, it falls to a calm. Soon after a contrary breeze springs
up, and blows during the night towards the sea, and then dies
away, to give place to the "sea breeze."
These winds are caused by the earth getting more heated than the
sea, so the air over it ascends, and the cool air from the sea
flows on to the land to supply its place, and during the night,
the earth getting cooler than the sea, the air becomes heavier
or denser, and flows out as it "land breeze."
The inhabitants of some regions, particularly the "Levant,"
call the breeze that comes from the sea
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© Peter Smith 2009
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