wind shear

Home > ... > Earth and the Environment > Atmosphere and Weather > Weather and Climate: Terms and Concepts > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

wind shear

wind shear a sudden, drastic change in wind direction or speed over a comparatively short distance. Most winds travel horizontally, as does most wind shear, but under certain conditions, including thunderstorms and strong frontal systems, wind shear will travel in a vertical direction. Microburst wind shear is an extremely violent downward blast of air that hits the earth and radiates outward. With its sharp shifts in wind direction and relative wind speed, it can cause an aircraft to lose lift and crash, especially during takeoff or landing, when the slower speeds and closeness to the ground make altitude correction more difficult. Since 1996 all U.S. airliners have been required to be equipped with instruments that provide the pilot with advance warning of wind shear. See also weather and wind .

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-windshea" title="Facts and information about wind shear">wind shear</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"wind shear." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"wind shear." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (December 22, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-windshea.html

"wind shear." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved December 22, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-windshea.html

Learn more about citation styles

wind shear

The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military | 2001 | Â© The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military 2001, originally published by Oxford University Press 2001. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

wind shear a change of wind direction and magnitude.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O63-windshear" title="Facts and information about wind shear">wind shear</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"wind shear." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"wind shear." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (December 22, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-windshear.html

"wind shear." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved December 22, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-windshear.html

Learn more about citation styles

Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries and thesauruses

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences entry for wind shear

Rate these entries|See all related entries

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Low level wind shear. Magazine article from: Flying Safety; 12/1/2005
	Wind shear eyed in deadly crash of FedEx cargo jet News Wire article from: AP Online; 3/23/2009
	Wind Shear Systems Failed in Thai Crash News Wire article from: AP Online; 9/18/2007

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Wind-shear detection equipment being developed by McDonnell Douglas Aircraft. PR Newswire; 5/27/1986; 700+ words ; ...flight director, and the wind shear computer will automatically...for flying through the shear. McDonnell emphasized...in dealing with wind shears. "The industry also...Doppler radar to detect shears on the ground and warn...recognize and avoid wind shear conditions," ...
	Vertical wind shear influences on tropical cyclone formation and intensification during TCM-92 and TCM-93 Magazine article from: Monthly Weather Review; 7/1/1996; ; 700+ words ; ...storms, which leads to vertical wind shears exceeding the 12.5...blends composited cloud-drift winds and aircraft reports between...analyses indicate that the high winds at 200 mb associated with low...convective outflows. Vertical wind shears calculated from the interactive...the ...
	Microbust Wind Shears Responsible for Many Air Crashes Transcript from: NPR Morning Edition; 7/7/1994; 700+ words ; ...known as microbust wind shear caused the crash...Microburst wind shears occur most often...anticipate a tail wind, which can cause...of heavy rain and wind shear warnings from flight...There are some wind shears that are so severe...low-level wind ...
	RESEARCH ON WIND SHEAR LAGS DESPITE RISK TO FLYING Newspaper article from: Post-Tribune (IN); 8/20/1987; 700+ words ; ...government stepped up its wind shear programs last year. Electronic wind shear detection equipment...helping pilots deal with shears. But the LLWS system...committee that has studied wind shear. "It doesn't matter...particularly threatened by wind shears. The ...
	Pilots told to fly away from wind shear threat Newspaper article from: Chicago Sun-Times; 1/2/1991; ; 700+ words ; ...Stapleton from further wind-shear incidents. The Denver radar...under circumstances conducive to wind shear, but it left no doubt that...the conditions that lead to wind shear, and if you see them...flight path has localized heavy winds or heavy precipitation, and...
	A Comparison of Tropical and Midlatitude Thunderstorm Evolution in Response to Wind Shear Magazine article from: Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences; 8/1/2009; ; 700+ words ; ...influence of vertical wind shear on storm development...show that larger wind shears are required in a tropical...storms require higher shears to split can be attributed...gust front. At higher shears in the tropics, entrainment...generally weak vertical wind shear ...
	Firm Granted Wind Shear Detection Patent. Newspaper article from: Air Safety Week; 3/7/2005; 470 words ; ...Australian company's new airborne wind shear detection system could save...patent for its Airborne Wind Shear Detection System. The patent...atmospheric conditions including wind shears, which may occur during the...conditions by detecting wind shear in aircraft not ...
	New device helped pilot here avoid wind shear Newspaper article from: Chicago Sun-Times; 12/18/1986; ; 670 words ; ...to warn pilots of wind shears paid off on its first day...time to avoid a severe wind shear on Nov. 11, 1985 - just three months after such winds caused a crash at Dallas...Commercial Flight Systems. Wind shears, sudden and violent shifts...
	Radar Data Suggest DC-9 Encountered Wind Shear Before Crash Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 7/5/1994; ; 700+ words ; ...experience when encountering microburst wind shears - cold columns of rapidly falling...questions remain unanswered. Even if wind shear was involved, investigators want...undergo intense training to recognize wind shear and fly through it if necessary...
	Organization of tropical convection in low vertical wind shears: The role of water vapor Magazine article from: Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences; 3/15/2001; ; 700+ words ; ...of factors such as vertical wind shear or underlying sea surface...in length, with no imposed winds, and horizontally uniform...cases of imposed vertical wind shear. It is found that strong wind shears prevent the feedback by effectively...