A wind rose is a graphic tool used by meteorologists to give a succinct view of how wind speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location. Historically, wind roses were predecessors of the compass rose (found on maps), as there was no differentiation between a cardinal direction and the wind which blew from such a direction. Using a polar coordinate system of gridding, the frequency of winds over a long time period are plotted by wind direction, with color bands showing wind ranges. The directions of the rose with the longest spoke show the wind direction with the greatest frequency.
Famous quotes containing the words wind and/or rose:
“The winter is made and you have to bear it,
The winter web, the winter woven, wind and wind,
For all the thoughts of summer that go with it
In the mind, pupa of straw, moppet of rags....”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)
“Come near; I would, before my time to go,
Sing of old Eire and the ancient ways:
Red Rose, proud Rose, sad Rose of all my days.”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)