Explain the Process That Creates Wind

A uniquely Southern California wind could blow through the region this evening (February. 15). Information technology’s chosen a sundowner wind, and it unremarkably means that the stiff Santa Ana winds are just days away.

A sundowner current of air is an often unsafe kind of offshore air current seen in Santa Barbara, Calif., that occurs in the late afternoon or early on evening. Sundowner winds can bring tropical storm strength gusts of upward to 60 mph (97 kph) at high elevations and, on rare occasions, in the city itself.

During the summertime wildfire season, sundowner winds are a serious wildfire business.

“It’s a condition that brings hot gusty winds and relatively low humidity,” said David Sugariness, a meteorologist with the National Weather Serviceoffice in Oxnard, Calif. “We’ve seen instances where the temperature has gone up xx degrees in Santa Barbara as the winds arrived.”

But that kind of fasten is rare, and extremely potent winds aren’t expected tonight. Stronger Santa Ana winds are forecast for Friday (Feb. 17) and gusts of threescore mph are possible during that upshot, according to the NWS.

Sundowner winds blow when a region of loftier pressure level is directly north of the area’s east–westward oriented coast. The winds are strongest when what is known as a pressure gradient forms perpendicular to the centrality of the Santa Ynez Mountains, which rise directly behind Santa Barbara.

Sundowner winds can exist a warning sign that the stronger Santa Ana winds will arrive in 2 days. If the high-pressure system that created the sundowner mixes with another high-pressure level organisation surging through Nevada, a due north-easterly pressure slope could form, creating “perfect conditions” for Santa Ana winds, Sweetness told OurAmazingPlanet.

Santa Ana winds are potent downward-gradient winds that blow through the Santa Ana Mount passes at speeds of forty mph (64 kph), according to the NWS. In December 2011, a Santa Ana wind storm in Southern California was 1 of the strongest in decades, with widespread gusts as strong as those of Hurricane Irene.

Santa Ana winds tin can exist of tropical storm strength (winds less than 74 mph, or 119 kph) at lower elevations and hurricane-strength (74 mph or greater) above 1,000 anxiety (305 meters).

Similar Santa Ana winds, sundowner winds are dangerous during wildfire season because the air is hot and dry. The winds can plough a minor fire into a raging wildfire before firefighters can contain the blaze.

If a fire were to go out of hand during stiff winds, firefighters would not exist able to use aircraft to fight the flames. Once the winds are to a higher place 35 mph (56 kph), firefighters must rely solely on boots on the footing, according to CalFire, the land’southward burn protection service.

You can follow OurAmazingPlanet staff writer Brett State of israel on Twitter: @btisrael.Follow OurAmazingPlanet for the latest in Earth science and exploration news on Twitter@OAPlanetand onFacebook.