🔍 Key Concepts

• Prevailing westerlies in middle latitudes • General circulation of the atmosphere between about 30° and 60° latitude • Difference between trade winds (tropics) and mid-latitude winds

💭 Think About

• In the U.S. and most of Europe, from which general direction do most large-scale weather systems and storms approach? • How do the prevailing westerlies affect the movement of low-pressure systems and frontal systems in the mid-latitudes? • Which direction of travel matches what you hear in daily forecasts: systems "moving across the country"?

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure you’re thinking specifically about middle latitudes (not the tropics or polar regions). • Focus on the direction that large-scale weather systems (fronts, lows, highs) move, not local wind shifts. • Eliminate any options that better fit trade wind regions near the equator or polar circulation near the poles.