How It Works - UK (2020-02)

Thefirstflightofthe

BoeingB 377showed

thejetstream’s

effectonplane

travelin 1952

http://www.howitworksdaily.com HowIt Works 051

DID YOU KNOW? Jet streams on Jupiter are 100 to 1,000 times wider than any found on Earth

1

BringingBritain’srain

TheNorthAtlanticCurrent,

runningfromtheGulfStream,

resultsinpartsoftheUKbeing

warmerthancountriestotheeast

onthesamelongitude.Inwinter

however,it bringsmorerain,asit

directslowpressuretowards

theUK.

2

DivertingUShurricanes

Inautumn,a strongjetstream

overtheUnitedStatescarries

incominghurricanesonan

eastwardpath,preventingthem

frommovingnorthalongtheGulf

CoastorAtlanticSeaboard.

3

Alteringtropicalstorms

If a jetstreamtravellingover

tropicalwaterssuddenlydips

southward,it cancausehurricanes

intheareatoaccelerateinspeed,

orsometimestearsthem

completelyapart.

4

Creatingtornados

ParticularlyinsomeNorth

Americanstates,suchas

Oklahoma,jetstreamsplaya major

roleincreatingsupercells,the

hugeandfrequentlydramatic

stormsystemslowerinthe

atmospherethatcanleadtothe

formationoftornados.

5

Drastictemperaturedrops

Asairabovejetstreamsis

typicallycolderthanaverage,when

streamstakea plungeandmove

southduringwinter,freezing

conditionsforminareasnow

abovetheair’spath.

HOW AIR CURRENTS

ALTER THE WEATHER

© Illustration by The Art Agency / Barry Croucher

Travelling in jet streams

As well as transporting weather, these highways in the sky can be utilised by

aeroplanes to power us towards our destinations. Planes often use the streams as a

speedier route, cutting down on air time. Jet streams started to be used for air travel

in the early 1950s after a flight from Tokyo to Honolulucutoversixhoursofftheusually

18-hour journey. Apart from time, an added perkthatcomeswithusingthesenatural

currents in aviation is the savings made in fuel consu ti Th N thAtl ti j t t

holds the most impact on flights during

January and February, as this is when

the temperature difference

between the North Pole

and the equator is

most drastic.

2

umption.TheNorthAtAlanticicjjetetsstrtreaeamm

Source: Wiki/XXXXXXXXX

Subtropical

jetstream

Thisstrongcurrent

travelsatlower

latitudesandhigher

elevationstothe

polarjetstream.

Zonalflow

Thestraightertheroute

takenbya jetstream,the

morezonalit is saidtobe.

Corioliseffect

TherotationofEarthonitsaxis

meansthatit turnsfasteratthe

equatorthanatthepoles.This

deflectsaircurrentstowardsthe

northandsouth,stoppingjet

streamsflowingatthecentre.