From the Greek for 'going downhill' and most commonly found in Antarctica and Greenland, what is the name of the wind that carries high density air from a higher elevation down a slope under the force of gravity?
Katabatic wind Katabatic wind A katabatic wind (named from the Greek word κατάβασις "katabasis", meaning "descending") is the technical name for a drainage wind, a wind that carries high-density air from a higher elevation down a slope under the force of gravity. Such winds are sometimes also called fall winds; the spelling catabatic winds also occurs. Katabatic winds can rush down elevated slopes at hurricane speeds, but most are not as intense as that, and many are of the order of 10 knots (18 km/h) or less. Not all downslope winds are katabatic. For instance, winds such as the föhn, chinook, and
Downhill creep Downhill creep Downhill creep, also known as soil creep or commonly just creep, is the slow downward progression of rock and soil down a low grade slope; it can also refer to slow deformation of such materials as a result of prolonged pressure and stress. Creep may appear to an observer to be continuous, but it really is the sum of numerous minute, discrete movements of slope material caused by the force of gravity. Friction, being the primary force to resist gravity, is produced when one body of material slides past another offering a mechanical resistance between the two which