The diagrams of January and July mean sea-level pressure reveal that, on the average, certain geographic locations can expect to experience winds that emanate from one prevailing direction largely dictated by the presence of major semipermanent pressure systems. Such prevailing winds have long been known in marine environments because of their influence on the great sailing ships.

Tropical and subtropical regions are characterized by a general band of low pressure lying near the Equator. This band is bounded by centres of high pressure that may extend poleward into the middle latitudes. Between these low- and high-pressure regions is the region of the tropical winds. Of these the most extensive are the trade winds. So named because of their favourable influence on trade ships traveling across the subtropical North Atlantic, trade winds flow westward and somewhat in the direction of the Equator on the equatorward side of the subtropical high-pressure centres. The “root of the trades,” occurring on the eastern side of a subtropical high-pressure centre, is characterized by subsiding air. This produces the very warm, dry conditions above a shallow layer of oceanic stratus clouds found in the eastern extremes of the subtropical Atlantic and Pacific ocean basins. As the trade winds progress westward, however, subsidence abates, the air mass becomes more humid, and scattered showers appear. These showers occur particularly on islands with elevated terrain features that interrupt the flow of the warm moist air. The equatorward flow of the trade winds of the Northern and Southern hemispheres often results in a convergence of the two air streams in a region known as the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ). Deep convective clouds, showers, and thunderstorms occur along the ITCZ.

When the air reaches the western extreme of the high-pressure centre, it turns poleward and then eventually returns eastward in the middle latitudes. The poleward-moving air is now warm and laden with moist maritime tropical air (mT); it gives rise to the warm, humid, showery climate characteristic of the Caribbean region, eastern South America, and the western Pacific island chains. The westerlies are associated with the changeable weather common to the middle latitudes. Migrating extratropical cyclones and anticyclones associated with contrasting warm moist air moving poleward from the tropics and cold dry air moving equatorward from polar latitudes yield periods of rain (sometimes with violent thunderstorms), snow, sleet, or freezing rain interrupted by periods of dry, sunny, and sometimes bitterly cold conditions. Furthermore, these patterns are seasonally dependent, with more intense cyclones and colder air prevailing in winter but with a higher incidence of thunderstorms common in spring and summer. In addition, these migrations and the associated climate are complicated by the presence of landmasses and major mountain features, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere.

The westerlies lie on the equatorward side of the semipermanent subpolar centres of low pressure. Poleward of these centres, the surface winds turn westward again over significant portions of the subpolar latitudes. As in the middle latitudes, the presence of major landmasses, notably in the Northern Hemisphere, results in significant variations in these polar easterlies. In addition, the wind systems and the associated climate are seasonally dependent. During the short summer season, the wind systems of the polar latitudes are greatly weakened. During the long winter months, these systems strengthen, and periods of snow alternate with long intervals of dry cold air characteristic of continental polar or continental arctic air masses.

These major regions of surface circulation and their associated pressure fields are related to mean meridional (north-south) circulation patterns as well (see the diagram). Although their presence is discernible in long-term mean statistics accumulated over a hemisphere, such cells are often difficult to detect on a daily basis at any given longitude.