An anabatic wind is a wind which blows up a steep slope or mountain side. These winds typically occur during the daytime in calm sunny weather. A hill or mountain top will be radiatively warmed by the Sun which in turn heats the air just above it. Air at a similar altitude over an adjacent valley or plain does not get warmed so much because of the greater distance to the ground below it. The effect may be enhanced if the lower lying ground is shaded by the mountain and so receives less heat. Wind is the quasi-horizontal movement of air (as opposed to an air current) caused by a horizontal pressure gradient force. ... Mount Cook, a mountain in New Zealand A mountain is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain in a limited area. ... For the landform that extends above the surrounding terrain and that is smaller than a mountain, see the article on mountain. ... This article is in the process of being merged into Heat, and may be outdated. ... A sun is the star at the center of a solar system. ... Heat (abbreviated Q, also called heat change) is the transfer of thermal energy between two bodies which are at different temperatures. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Altitude is the elevation of an object from a known level or datum, called zero level. ... Fljótsdalur in East-Iceland A valley is a landform, which can range from a few square miles (square kilometers) to hundreds or even thousands of square miles (square kilometers) in area. ... In geography, a plain is an expanse of land with relatively low relief. ...

The air over the hill top is now warmer than the air at a similar altitude around it and will rise through convection. This creates a lower pressure region into which the air at the bottom of the slope flows, causing the wind. It is common for the air rising from the tops of large mountains to reach a height where it cools adiabatically to below its dew point and forms cumulus clouds. These can then produce rain or even thunderstorms. Convection is the transfer of heat by the motion of or within a fluid. ... This article covers adiabatic processes in thermodynamics. ... The dew point or dewpoint of a given parcel of air is the temperature to which the parcel must be cooled, at constant barometric pressure, for the water vapor component to condense into water, called dew. ... Cumulus can also refer to Cumulus Media (also known as Cumulus Broadcasting) A cumulus cloud is a cloud belonging to a class characterized by dense individual elements in the form of puffs, mounds or towers, with flat bases and tops that often resemble cauliflower. ... Rain is a form of precipitation, other forms of which include snow, sleet, hail, and dew. ... A rolling thundercloud over Enschede, The Netherlands. ...

Anabatic winds are particularly useful to soaring glider pilots who can use them to increase the aircraft's altitude. Gliders are un-powered heavier-than-air aircraft. ...

Katabatic winds are down-slope winds, frequently produced at night by the opposite effect, the air near to the ground losing heat to it faster than air at a similar altitude over adjacent low-lying land. A katabatic wind, from the Greek word katabatikos meaning going downhill, is a wind that blows down a topographic incline such as a hill, mountain, or glacier. ...