GEOSTROPHIC WIND

This wind aloft is known as geostrophic wind, and it bears a second look.

If there is virtually no frictional resistance, and the source of energy is not removed or
diminished (the gradient remains), what is there to prevent the wind from building to an infinite
velocity?

Furthermore, one might think that since velocity continues to build with no appreciable
resistance from friction, the Coriolis effect would continue to increase as well. Why wouldn't it
continue to deflect the wind to the right indefinitely, eventually deflecting it right around in a full
circle?

The answer lies in the balancing of all the forces at work. Looking at figure 7-10, we can follow
a unit of wind as it reacts to the various forces at work on it.

For starters, we know it will want to blow directly from the area of high pressure to the area of
low pressure. This path would take it perpendicular to the isobars, straight down the "hill" that is
the pressure gradient. The steepness of the pressure gradient will determine how much force is
accelerating the wind, and this we call the gradient force.

Starting with zero velocity, Coriolis effect would be zero, and the wind would get started down
the gradient. This would be the gradient wind. As soon as the wind gained some velocity,
Coriolis effect would begin to show up, and since velocity would be low, the effect would be
slight, and it would be deflected a little to the right.

The gradient force won't change, but as the wind's velocity increases, the Coriolis force will
increase, deflecting it more and more to the right.

At some point the velocity will get high enough, and thus the Coriolis force will get high enough,
to deflect the wind a full 90 to the right of its original path, or 90 to the gradient, or parallel
to the isobars.

What happens next? The wind tries to blow harder, and therefore the Coriolis effect tries to force
it farther to the right. But farther to the right means it must blow back up the gradient, or fall up
hill. Thus the gradient force slows it down until it comes back in exact balance with the Coriolis
effect, and the wind stabilizes at 90 to the gradient, parallel to the isobars, and can not blow
any harder.

This in fact very nearly does occur at high altitudes, and is known as the geostrophic wind. It
even occurs at the surface in very powerful cyclonic storms, like hurricanes and tornadoes, where
in spite of friction, wind speeds get up high enough to reach a full 90 deflection.

Now we can understand that at the surface friction holds wind speeds down to a point where
their deflection is about 60-70 to the right of the isobars over land and about 75-80 over
water. But aloft (above 600m or 2000ft.) the friction is essentially negligible and winds blow
virtually parallel to the isobars.

The velocity of the wind is determined by the steepness of the pressure gradient, or the pressure
gradient force. The steepness of the gradient is indicated by the spacing of the isobars. So by
looking at a pressure map of the upper air, meteorologists can predict the upper level winds with
a fair degree of accuracy. Or, conversely, if they know what the upper air winds are doing, they
can determine what the upper air pressure distribution looks like. This is a handy and important
system of checking their information.
AIRFLOW AROUND PRESSURE SYSTEMS

We know that wind, given its choice, would flow from a high to a low pressure area, and we
know that the Coriolis force diverts it to the right. Aloft we have geostrophic winds blowing
parallel to the isobars, but at the surface we know that friction gets involved and changes that.
So let's look at surface winds for a bit. If we look at a low pressure area for starters, we will see
that wind which would like to blow directly into the center of the low will be deflected (over
water) about 75 to 80 (60-70 over land).

Since the isobars are curved around the center of the low this results in a wind pattern that spirals
around the low, from the outside in, in a counter-clockwise rotation (in the northern hemisphere).
This type of inward spiraling airflow is called cyclonic. In the southern hemisphere it is also
called cyclonic, although it will be in a clockwise direction, since the Coriolis force will be
working to the left.

Looking at a high pressure system, we can see that wind would like to flow directly out from the
center, but once deflected, ends up flowing in a clockwise spiral outward from the high. This is
called anticyclonic (north or south) and represents clockwise flow in the northern hemisphere
and counter-clockwise flow in the southern hemisphere.

This can be reduced to a rule of thumb for mariners as stated by a fellow named Buys Ballot and
therefore known as Buys Ballot's Law. This states that in a storm (which would be a cyclonic
disturbance) if you face into the wind, the center of the storm (the low) will be to your right ,
slightly over your right shoulder.

Another rule of thumb that can be useful for guesstimating predicted wind speed from a pressure
map says that for a 1mb pressure change over 30 miles, a wind speed of 24 knots can be
anticipated. This is valid, more or less, for the middle latitudes, and be converted to a formula
for various pressure gradients.
W=P/D x 30 x 24
which of course can be written as: W=720(P/D)

where W is wind speed, P is pressure change in millibars, and D is distance in miles.

This is derived from the fact that wind velocity is dependent on the steepness of the pressure
gradient. It is important to remember that the pressure gradient is the pressure drop over a given
distance, and is not necessarily tied to the barometer reading at any given moment, or even the
measured change in barometer reading over time, although this is often a good indicator.

To illustrate the latter, if we were stationary and we were on the edge of a very deep low, we
could be under a very steep pressure gradient, but if the low were not moving, our barometer
would remain steady. Likewise if we were underway and moving at approximately the same
speed as the low, we would not notice a significant pressure change. Nonetheless, if we see a
dramatic fall or rise in the barometer, it must be indicating a steep pressure gradient, and we will
very likely experience a strong wind.
CONVERGENCE AND DIVERGENCE

Knowing now that wind blows from a high to a low pressure area, we are confronted with
another seemingly contradictory fact. If winds blow from all directions into a low pressure area,
won't they stack up and very quickly form a pile of air, which would then become a high? The
answer to this problem is that horizontal convergence of air generates a vertical motion of air
upwards over a low, and then in turn produces a divergence of air aloft. In fact, it often happens
in reverse. It can be a divergence of air aloft that creates the low at the surface in the first place.
The divergence aloft can sustain the surface low if it is vigorous, deepen the low (intensify it) if
it strengthens, or fill the low if it is not strong enough to sustain it.

The same applies to a surface high. The buildup of pressure at the surface creates a net outflow,
or divergence, of air at the surface. This in turn draws air down from aloft, which in turn draws
air in from all sides, producing a net inflow or convergence aloft. The conditions aloft again will
strengthen the high if they are favorable for convergence, or weaken the high if they are
unfavorable for convergence.

Causes of surface convergence and divergence

What causes air to converge at surface level? What if you suddenly slowed down a moving mass
of air, say by running it onto land from over the water. Over the water there was little friction,
but when it hit land, friction slowed it down substantially. It would slow down, and the air
behind would pile into it,. This is convergence. The air piles up, and flows aloft. So surface
convergence causes vertical motion. The opposite occurs when air flows out over the water from
the land. It speeds up, diverges, causing subsidence.

Anytime relatively fast moving air piles into relatively slower moving air, you will have
convergence, and vice-versa. This is true aloft and at the surface, over land or water. A
mountain range can cause it. A slower moving air mass can cause it. Many things can cause it.

Now that we are thinking of a surface low as a column of ascending air, and a surface high as a
column of descending air, we can appreciate why we associate bad weather with lows and nice
weather with highs. Air flowing into a low at the surface rises, cools, condenses, forms clouds
and rains. Air descending from aloft into a high is falling, warming, evaporating and therefore
clearing.

Apart from the conditions of pressure aloft, there is another major consideration there for surface
prediction, and that is the wind direction. The winds aloft provide most of the steering force for
surface weather systems. We learned that winds aloft are more or less geostrophic (they blow
nearly parallel to the isobars and with great strength). Therefore looking at a high altitude
pressure map we can say that the winds will blow along the isobars, and will in turn steer the
weather systems that way.

Now it is apparent that the pressures and winds aloft are of paramount importance for
determining the future of the conditions at the surface. Meteorologists must evaluate upper air
maps to determine whether to anticipate deepening of lows, or strengthening of highs, as well as
their future movement.