Trade winds both hemispheres by the Coriolis effect. These winds blow predominantly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere. Because winds are named for the direction from which the wind is blowing, these winds are called the northeasterly trade winds in the Northern Hemisphere and the southeasterly trade winds in the Southern Hemisphere. The trade winds of both hemispheres meet at the doldrums. As they blow across tropical regions, air masses heat up over lower latitudes due to more direct sunlight. Those that develop over land (continental) are drier and hotter than those that
Prevailing winds surface winds found in the tropics near the Earth's equator, equatorward of the subtropical ridge. These winds blow predominantly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere. The trade winds act as the steering flow for tropical cyclones that form over world's oceans, guiding their path westward. Trade winds also steer African dust westward across the Atlantic Ocean into the Caribbean sea, as well as portions of southeast North America. The westerlies or the prevailing westerlies are the prevailing winds in the middle latitudes (i.e., between 35 and 65 degrees latitude), which blow