Anemometer Anemometer An anemometer is a device used for measuring wind speed, and is also a common weather station instrument. The term is derived from the Greek word "anemos", which means wind, and is used to describe any wind speed instrument used in meteorology. The first known description of an anemometer was given by Leon Battista Alberti in 1450. The anemometer has changed little since its development in the 15th century. Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472) is said to have invented the first mechanical anemometer around 1450. In following centuries, numerous others, including Robert Hooke (1635–1703), developed their own versions, with some
Anemometer first modern anemometers. They consist of a flat plate suspended from the top so that the wind deflects the plate. In 1450, the Italian art architect Leon Battista Alberti invented the first mechanical anemometer; in 1664 it was re-invented by Robert Hooke (who is often mistakenly considered the inventor of the first anemometer). Later versions of this form consisted of a flat plate, either square or circular, which is kept normal to the wind by a wind vane. The pressure of the wind on its face is balanced by a spring. The compression of the spring determines the actual force