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Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Strong wind This article is about strong winds. For other uses, see Gale (disambiguation).

The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this article, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new article, as appropriate. (May 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between 34 and 47 knots (63.0 and 87.0 km/h; 17.5 and 24.2 m/s; 39.1 and 54.1 mph).[1] Forecasters typically issue gale warnings when winds of this strength are expected. In the United States, a gale warning is specifically a maritime warning; the land-based equivalent in National Weather Service warning products is a wind advisory.

Other sources use minima as low as 28 knots (52 km/h; 14 m/s; 32 mph), and maxima as high as 90 knots (170 km/h; 46 m/s; 100 mph). Through 1986, the National Hurricane Center used the term “gale” to refer to winds of tropical storm-force for coastal areas between 33 knots (61 km/h; 17 m/s; 38 mph) and 63 knots (117 km/h; 32 m/s; 72 mph). The 90 knots (170 km/h; 46 m/s; 100 mph) definition is very non-standard. A common alternative definition of the maximum is 55 knots (102 km/h; 63 mph; 28 m/s).[2]

The most common way of describing wind force is with the Beaufort scale[3] that defines a gale as wind from 50 kilometres per hour (14 m/s) to 102 kilometres per hour (28 m/s). It is an empirical measure for describing wind speed based mainly on observed sea conditions. On the original 1810 Beaufort wind force scale, there were four "gale" designations whereas generally today there are two gale forces, 8 and 9, and a near gale 7:

Wind force	Original name	Current name	km/h	m/s	mph	knots	Mean knots	Sea state
7	Moderate gale	Near gale	50–61	14–17	32–38	28–33	30	Rough
8	Fresh gale	Gale	62–74	17–20	39–46	34–40	37	Very Rough
9	Strong gale	Severe Gale/ Strong Gale (UK)	75–88	21–24	47–54	41–47	44	High
10	Whole gale	Storm	89–102	25–28	55–63	48–55	52	Very High

Etymology

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The word gale is derived from the Middle English gale, a general word for wind of any strength, even a breeze. This word is probably of North Germanic origin, related to Icelandic gola (breeze) and Danish gal (furious, mad),[4] which are both from Old Norse gala (to sing), from Proto-Germanic *galaną (to roop, sing, charm), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰel- (to shout, scream, charm away). Well into the nineteenth century, English-speaking seafarers still referred to relatively modest windspeeds as a 'gale,' if qualified by the kind of sail that could reasonably be set in those conditions (e.g., topsail gale or topgallant gale).

References

[edit]

1. ^ National Weather Service Glossary Archived 2020-05-11 at the Wayback Machine, s.v. "gale" Archived 2021-08-31 at the Wayback Machine.
2. ^ "Glossary of Meteorological Terms". NovaLynx Corporation. Archived from the original on 2008-12-11.
3. ^ "Beaufort wind force scale". Met Officewebsite.
4. ^ Etymology of gale

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Severestorms	Thunderstorm Advisory Watch PDS watch Warning Tornado Watch PDS watch Warning PDS warning Emergency Marine thunderstorm Special marine warning
Winterweather	Advisories Winter weather advisory Winter storm Watch Warning Blizzard/blowing snow Blowing snow advisory Blizzard watch Blizzard warning Heavy snow Warning Lake-effect snow Advisory Watch Warning Snow squall Warning Ice Freezing rain advisory Ice storm warning Avalanche Warning Watch Advisory
Tropicalcyclones	Tropical storms Watch Warning Hurricanes Watch Warning Typhoons Watch Warning Cyclones Watch Warning Storm surge Watch Warning Hurricane local statement Tropical storm local statement Tropical depression local statement
Flood	Flood Watch Warning Advisory Flash flood Watch PDS watch Warning Emergency Coastal flood Advisory Watch Warning Statement Lakeshore flood Warning Advisory Watch Statement River flood Advisory Watch Warning Urban and small stream flood Advisory
Apparenttemperature	Heat index Heat advisory Extreme heat watch Extreme heat warning Extreme cold Cold Weather Advisory Extreme Cold Watch Extreme Cold Warning PDS warning Freeze Watch Warning Hard freeze warning Frost advisory Hard freeze watch
Maritimeandcoastalweather	Marine winds Small craft advisory Brisk wind advisory Lake wind advisory Gale Watch Warning Storm Watch Warning Hurricane-force wind Warning Watch Hazardous seas Watch Warning Freezing spray Freezing spray advisory Heavy freezing spray watch Heavy freezing spray warning Marine weather statement Rip current statement Beach hazards statement
High surf	High surf advisory High surf warning High surf watch
Wind	Advisory-force winds Wind advisory Gale-force winds High wind watch High wind warning Major hurricane-force winds Extreme wind warning
Airborneparticulates	Dust/sand Blowing dust advisory Blowing dust warning Dust advisory Dust storm warning Fog/Smoke Dense fog advisory Dense smoke advisory Ash Ashfall advisory Ashfall warning Air pollution Air stagnation advisory Air quality alert
Fire	Red flag warning Fire warning Evacuation immediate Fire weather watch
Aviation	SIGMET Volcanic ash advisory
Weather scalesused by NWS	Beaufort (wind) Enhanced Fujita (tornadoes) Saffir–Simpson scale (tropical cyclones)
Other	Special weather statement Severe weather statement Hazardous weather outlook
Tsunami	Watch Warning Advisory

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