Welcome to the next video in my worldbuilding guide series for creating an Earth-like planet! This video is focused on air circulation, and high and low pressure zones.
NOTE: This video has been partially refilmed and reuploaded. There was a mistake part way through in the original version where I swapped the labels for high and low pressure and the following maps were off because of this. I refilmed as little as possible to patch in and correct these mistakes.
DISCLAIMER: If you are looking to create a fantasy world in a few hours, this guide is not for you. If you are looking for good value between time spent and realism in your fantasy world, this is probably not for you either. This guide goes way more in depth than most other worldbuilding guides to a level that is objectively not necessary. However, “necessary” is not the point here. If you want to understand WHY your world is the way it is and let your world come alive as you slowly mold it, then this guide is for you.
To already contradict my disclaimer, the reason I go to this level of detail in creating my fantasy worlds is not just because I enjoy it. Things like geography and climate have a huge impact on civilization. Knowing about the world around your people is the first part in understanding them.
Worldbuilding Guide Playlist: [ Ссылка ]
Worldbuilding Guide Vlog: [ Ссылка ]
00:00 Intro
02:05 Intro to concepts
09:27 1 Mapping Air Circulation
17:22 2 High and Low Pressure
31:20 3 Mapping Wind Currents
40:52 Patterns
44:46 Wrap-Up
Correction: 33:58 High pressure directions are correct but Low pressure should be the opposite. In the N. hemisphere winds move counter clockwise towards low pressure and in the S. it moves clockwise
Correction: 34:10 Map drawn reflects incorrect rotation of winds around low pressure areas. In the N. hemisphere these should be moving counter clockwise and in the S. Hemisphere they should be moving clockwise
Graphics Used:
Earth Global Circulation - Kaidor, CC BY-SA 3.0 [ Ссылка ], via Wikimedia Commons
Atmospheric Circulation Efect of an Expanding Tropics - This figures, “Atmospheric Circulation”, was provided by Judith Perlwitz. The original figure is found in: Panel #1: NWS, cited 2016: Global Circulations in NWS Jet Stream: An Online School for Weather. National Weather Service. [Available online at [ Ссылка ]]. The figure version presented here was adapted from the original as follows: The figure was adapted by adding content. This includes descriptive text of the circulation features (Polar Cell, Ferrell Cell, Hadley Cell, Polar easterlies, westerlies trade winds) , indicating the subtropical climate zones (orange shading in the map), and indicate by orange arrow the effect of an expanding tropics. Panel #2: NWS, cited 2016: Global Circulations in NWS Jet Stream: An Online School for Weather. National Weather Service. [Available online at [ Ссылка ]] The figure version presented here was adapted from the original as follows: The figure was adapted by adding content. This includes descriptive text (cold air sinks, warm air rises, Easterlies, Westerlies, NE Trade winds , regions of high (H) and low (L) pressure, and dry and stable regions). In addition subtropical climate latitude band is indicated in orange, and orange arrow indicates the effect of an expanding tropics., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
ITCZ January-July - Mats Halldin, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Hadley Cell Omega 500 July 1979 - William M Connoley, Creative Commons, via Wikimedia Commons
500 hPa vertical velocity (Pa/S) in July from ERA-40 reanalysis, 1979-2001 average.
Negative (blue) values represent rising air; positive (red) values indicate sinking air. This map is an excellent illustration of the Hadley cell.
Polar Vortex Winter - Courtesy: National Science Foundation, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Polar Vortex Jan 21 1985 - National Meteorological Center, Camp Springs, MD, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Jetstream - Rossby Waves - N Hemisphere - Fred the Oyster, Creative Commons, via Wikimedia Commons
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