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slope valley breeze
SLOPE VALLEY BREEZE
The development of small-scale winds can be attributed to the same variations
of temperature and pressure as seen in a sea or land breeze. In mountainous
areas, these differences are created over the complex terrain whereby each valley
has its own separate convection system that circulates the air.
During the day, the sun beats down on the mountain sides, heating the surrounding
air and causing the air to rise up the slope. Cooler, heavier air flows downhill
into the center of the shadowed valley. A circulation is formed as this cool
air becomes heated along the slopes and rises. This is known as a valley breeze
or an anabatic wind.
At night, the process reverses.
After sunset, the mountain sides cool faster than the valley floor. This produces
a circulation where the cooler air flows down the slopes into the valley while
the relatively warmer air from the valley floor rises upward. This is known
as a mountain breeze or a katabatic wind.
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