PREDOMINANT WINDS AND EXPLORERS' ROUTES

In the early fifteenth century, Europeans sailed out of sight of the coastlines of Europe for the first time and ventured into the Atlantic Ocean. In order to navigate, sailors had to learn to harness the wind systems of the Atlantic, which produce a clockwise wind carousel north of the equator and a counterclockwise wind carousel south of the equator. Christopher Columbus used the northern carousel to reach the West Indies in 1492, and Vasco da Gama used both to circumnavigate the Cape of Good Hope and enter the Indian Ocean in 1497. Europeans discovered a very different wind system dominating the Indian Ocean. Monsoon winds, formed as a result of air warming or cooling over the Asian continent, create a seasonal cycle whereby summer winds propel sailors to India and winter winds propel sailors to Africa. Learn more about the predominant winds of the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean with the animated map below.

To view this animated map, you require the Macromedia Flash 4.0 Plug-In that can be obtained by clicking here

© The Applied History Research Group and The Learning Commons, University of Calgary

Place your cursor over "Enter" to view the map