trade winds

The name given to the persistent easterly-component maritime winds that blow on either side of the equator, in two large terrestrial belts extending from the equatorial zone to 25º of north and south latitude. In certain longitudinal bands and times of year, this wind regime can reach the 30th parallel or, conversely, be confined to the vicinity of the equator. Also known as "the trade winds" ( Trade Winds, in English), the trade winds have long been known to sailors, which drove the first scientific studies on the general circulation of the atmosphere. While in the northern hemisphere they blow from the NE, in the south they do so from the SE, giving rise between the two to the existence of the intertropical convergence zone.