land breeze

The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea | 2006 | 520 words | Copyright

land breeze, an evening offshore wind which blows from the land to seaward when the temperature of the land falls below that of the sea. As the sun sets, areas of land cool more quickly than the sea adjoining them. The air over the land thus becomes heavier and flows out to sea to establish an equilibrium with the lighter air over the sea. The opposite occurs when the land heats more quickly than the sea during the day and draws heavier air from the sea, creating an onshore sea breeze. See also marine meteorology.

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