Learn how mountains, bodies of water, and human habitation affect atmospheric activity

Learn how mountains, bodies of water, and human habitation affect atmospheric activity

Learn about factors affecting the localized movement of air.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
  • Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
    Learn more about the issue of biodiversity loss with Enrique Salmón, a professor at California State University, East Bay.
  • Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
    Plot twist: bears aren't true hibernators.
    Media Editor: Miranda Chabot
  • NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications
    Infrared technology changes what we can see in space.
  • Created and produced by QA International. © QA International, 2010. All rights reserved. www.qa-international.com
    Living organisms influence the cycling of carbon and oxygen through the environment.
  • Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail © Anan Sudsaithong/Dreamstime.com
    Learn about squalls.
  • Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
    Differences in the amount of solar radiation available to the poles and the Equator drive atmospheric processes.
  • Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz
    Learn why snow makes a crunching sound when underfoot.

Transcript

NARRATOR: What the wind is like where you are depends on additional factors. For example, mountains change the direction wind can blow.

Bodies of water also play a part, since they're often cooler than the shore. Air rises from land and falls toward the water. The resulting circulation makes wind on the surface blow toward land.

Human habitation also affects the temperature of the air. So it, too, is a source of wind.

Many different things affect the movement of the atmosphere. These factors, combined together in complex ways, give us our weather. Conditions in the atmosphere may lead to gentle breezes, or violent storms. Storms are caused by concentrations of energy in the atmosphere. They have important effects on the way air moves.