Why is wind directon expressed as "FROM"?

Is it me, or is wind direction bass ackwards?

Vectors normally indicate direction an object is moving, but not so with
wind.

Why is that?

Is it me, or is wind direction bass ackwards?

Vectors normally indicate direction an object is moving, but not so with
wind.

Why is that?

I suspect it's a holdover from weather. You don't care where wind is
going (for the purposes of weather prediction) but you do care where it
came from (as that gives hints as to what kind of airmass will be
arriving, and what it will bring with it). When wind is coming from New
Jersey, this tells you something. When wind is =going= to New Jersey,
it's their problem.

Jose
--
You can choose whom to befriend, but you cannot choose whom to love.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

JohnH wrote:

Is it me, or is wind direction bass ackwards?

Vectors normally indicate direction an object is moving, but not so with
wind.

Why is that?

Not sure of the official reason, but hearing the wind direction expressed
as a FROM direction provides me with a very quick way of determining which
runway is most aligned with landing into the wind.

For example, landing at an airport with a single strip runway labeled 10 on
one side and 28 on the other, you hear the wind on the ASOS reported as
"250 at 15." What runway will you choose?

--
Peter

In article ,
Jose wrote:
Is it me, or is wind direction bass ackwards?

Vectors normally indicate direction an object is moving, but not so with
wind.

Why is that?

I suspect it's a holdover from weather. You don't care where wind is
going (for the purposes of weather prediction) but you do care where it
came from (as that gives hints as to what kind of airmass will be
arriving, and what it will bring with it). When wind is coming from New
Jersey, this tells you something. When wind is =going= to New Jersey,
it's their problem.

The usage probably predates aviation, but it certainly does come in
handy for pilots trying to pick the right runway to use. If the ATIS
says the wind is X, pick the runway numbered closest to X and you'll
have a headwind.

When wind is coming from New Jersey, this tells you something. When wind is =going= to New Jersey, it's their problem.

LOL
The Monk

In article , Peter R.
wrote:

For example, landing at an airport with a single strip runway labeled 10 on
one side and 28 on the other, you hear the wind on the ASOS reported as
"250 at 15." What runway will you choose?

The one that lets me roll out closest to the parking area. :-)

--
Garner R. Miller
ATP/CFII/MEI
Clifton Park, NY =USA=
http://www.garnermiller.com/

On Thu, 5 Jan 2006 11:51:58 -0500, "JohnH"
wrote in ::

Why is that?

The convention is probably a result of the way a weather vane works;
the arrowhead points into the wind, so a compass rose placed under it
indicates the direction of the wind's origin.

The convention is probably a result of the way a weather vane works;

I'd say the opposite - the vane is designed that way because we're
interested in where the hot air came from.

One could easily design a vane that worked the other way.

Jose
--
You can choose whom to befriend, but you cannot choose whom to love.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

On Thu, 05 Jan 2006 17:49:51 GMT, Jose
wrote in ::

One could easily design a vane that worked the other way.

How would you do that?

Make the arrowhead really big and mount the thing by the tail.

Tie a piece of string on a stick and see which way it points.