Travel on will take longer
Can you please tell me what factors cause airplane times to differ between travels to east and to west.
It's interesting that you ask this - I am directly experiencing it right now as I sit on an airplane from the UK. It took 5 hours to go West-East on this journey, but is taking about 7 East-West. The reason for the difference is an atmospheric phenomena known as the jet stream. The jet stream is a very high altitude wind which always blows from the West to the East across the Atlantic. The planes moving at a constant air speed thus go faster in the West-East direction when they are moving with the wind than in the opposite direction.
Every planet/moon has global wind that are mostly determined by the way the planet/moon rotates and how evenly the Sun illuminates it. On the Earth the equator gets much more Sun than the poles. resulting in warmer air at the equator than the poles and creating circulation cells (or "Hadley Cells") which consist of warm air rising over the equator and then moving North and South from it and back round.
The Earth is also rotating. When any solid body rotates, bits of it that are nearer its axis move slower than those which are further away. As you move north (or south) from the equator, you are moving closer to the axis of the Earth and so the air which started at the equator and moved north (or south) will be moving faster than the ground it is over (it has the rotation speed of the ground at the equator, not the ground which is is now over). This results in winds which always move from the west to the east in the mid latitudes.
About the Author
Karen was a graduate student at Cornell from 2000-2005. She went on to work as a researcher in galaxy redshift surveys at Harvard University, and is now on the Faculty at the University of Portsmouth back in her home country of the UK. Her research lately has focused on using the morphology of galaxies to give clues to their formation and evolution. She is the Project Scientist for the Galaxy Zoo project.
See also:
|
Book Light for Reading in Bed At Night with Sure Grip Clamp, Flexible Neck and Bonus Travel Bag - Best LED Clip On Lights for Kids, Study, or Hobby Craft - Perfect for Paperback & Hardcover Books Lighting (The Little Book Light Company)
|
|
Vitamin C Under Eye and Skin Care Facial Serum By Lilian Fache - With 25% Vitamin C - Highest Potency, Naturally Organic Formula for Those Who Want a Lighter, Cleaner Feel Than Cream - The Best Formula to Help Eliminate Lines, Wrinkles, Aging Skin and Crows Feet - Fight For, Protect and Nourish Your Skin with Anti Aging C Serum to Ensure a Fresh Dewy Glow Your Skin Needs and Deserves! - 1 Oz./30 Ml Beauty (Lilian Fache)
|
|
Deego [2-Pack] 3.9feet/1.2m Micro USB Cables High Speed USB 2.0 A Male to Micro B Sync and Charge Cables for Android, Samsung, HTC, Motorola, Nokia and More (2x3.9ft/1.2m black pack) Wireless (Welcome to Cafeleo.Cafeleo offer the manufacture and trade of cell phone accessories.Under rich experience of accumulation at about 10 years,Cafeleo professional offer a variety range of mobile phone cover,like silicon, TPU,PC, aluminum,crystal,wood,metal,plastic and leather cover,stand,armdand,skin,car chargers,belt clip wear-resistant, scratch resistan and so on for boys,girls,teenagers,guys,men,women.You can choose the case that fit you well.Cafeleo tried its best to provide you high-quality,the newest and durable products,we will give you cheaper price,the best service and prompt delivery.There are many kinds of mobile phone brands such as Samsung,Apple,LG,Motorola,Nokia,Huawei,ZTE,for example iPad mini, iPhone5,iPhone 5C/5S, iPhone 6,iPhone 6plus,Samsung Galaxy s6/s6 edge/Note 4/Note 3/Note edge,LG g3/g4,Motorola G and so on.To learn the advanced ideas,we take Otterbox,Ulak,Spigen,Speck,I-blason,Tech 21,Caselogo and so on for example.Cafeleo provides all kinds of colors such as red, pink, green, aqua, orange, black, blue, teal, yellow,gold, mint, hotpink, rose etc.We product simple but smart, fashion, useful 0.01mm,0.02mm,0.03mm,0.04mm,0.05mm,0.06mm,0.07mm,one whole piece,1d, 1 cent, 2 in 1 piece,3 in 1 piece,4 in 1 piece,2 pack, 3d ,3d cartoon, 3d silicone, 3d bling 3d animals, 5 pack, lyrics, 5 stars, 5 dollars, 5 below, 5 seconds, 99 cents,hearts, lifeproof, heavy duty, floral, giraffe, light weight, waterproof,basketball, clear, elegant, eiffel tower, cheap, funny, flowers,cute, anchord, diamond designer. We not only focus on leading items, but also care about your best shopping experiences. Cafeleo tried our best to satisfied every customer.So just enjoy your shopping trip at our store.Cafeleo are looking forward to do business with you all over the world.)
|
|
|
Soloportis Jewelry Organizer Travel Roll Up, Black Velvet Bag with Zipper Compartments, COOL GIFTS Home (Soloportis)
|
|
iboard [4 Angles] [Built-in 3 Port] Universal Monitor TV Desktop Laptop Computer Multimedia Stand with built-in 3 Port USB 2.0 Organizer (Premium Black) Office Product (iroo)
|
