Moving air is called wind. Winds are caused because of uneven heating of the earth’s surface by the rays of the sun. As long as the sun shines, winds will be produced. Winds or breeze have been given different names in order to identify them. There is sea breeze and land breeze. Some winds have been beneficial to man. The trade winds for example are so named because they carried merchants to their destinations, facilitating trade. Then we have the Nor’ esters and the Nor’easters. Man has used different methods to harness the power of the winds. Egyptians used wind power to sail their ships across the Nile and windmills to grind their grain. Windmills were also used to generate electricity. Wind direction is measured by a weathervane. A weathervane is a unique device mounted on a shaft which rotates on its axis to show the direction of the wind source. Most people are mistaken that a weathervane shows the direction in which the wind is going. That’s not true. A weathervane actually points to the direction from where the wind is coming. For example if the wind is coming from the south, it will point towards the south. Earlier only the rich owned weathervanes but later the common man began to put it on his rooftops. Weathervanes are becoming more popular in recent times. The Internet is full of retailers who sell a large variety of beautifully designed weathervanes.
A weathervane will be used as long as the sun shines
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