Prevailing Westerlies are winds that blow in which direction between which latitudes?

Prevailing Westerlies are winds that blow in which direction between which latitudes?

• A. Winds That Blow East to West Between 30 and 60 Degrees
• B. Winds That Blow West to East Between 0 and 30 Degrees
• C. Winds That Blow East to West Near the Poles
• D. Winds That Blow West to East Between 30 and 60 Degrees

Answer: (D)

The main idea is how winds in the mid-latitudes move and why they travel from west to east. In the region roughly between 30° and 60° latitude in both hemispheres, air flows from the west toward the east. This happens because of the way the atmosphere circulates: air rises near the subtropics, moves toward higher latitudes, and is deflected by the rotation of the Earth (the Coriolis effect), creating a steady westerly flow that carries weather systems from west to east. So the description that fits best is winds blowing from west to east between 30 and 60 degrees. The other belts are different: near the poles the winds are easterlies (east to west), and near the equator the trade winds blow from east to west between 0 and 30 degrees, not west to east.

The main idea is how winds in the mid-latitudes move and why they travel from west to east. In the region roughly between 30° and 60° latitude in both hemispheres, air flows from the west toward the east. This happens because of the way the atmosphere circulates: air rises near the subtropics, moves toward higher latitudes, and is deflected by the rotation of the Earth (the Coriolis effect), creating a steady westerly flow that carries weather systems from west to east. So the description that fits best is winds blowing from west to east between 30 and 60 degrees. The other belts are different: near the poles the winds are easterlies (east to west), and near the equator the trade winds blow from east to west between 0 and 30 degrees, not west to east.