Do I need to install anything?

No. It runs in any modern browser, free, with no account required.

For Educators · Geostrophic Wind

Geostrophic Wind for a microburst

Built for educators teaching it to a class. Drop a live demo into a lecture or assign it as a shareable link — no lab installs. Simulate a microburst live below — adjust the inputs and watch it respond, right in your browser.

Geostrophic WindLive

wind parallel to isobars

Controls

Presets

Pressure gradient (mbar/100km)

Latitude (°)

Away from the ground, wind does not blow from high to low pressure — it blows along the isobars. The pressure-gradient force pushing air toward low pressure is balanced by the Coriolis force, and the result, the geostrophic wind, runs parallel to the pressure lines. Tighter isobar spacing means stronger wind. This is why you can read wind straight off a weather map.

▶ Run in Python

Data Inspector

Geostrophic wind24.2 m/s

In km/h87 km/h

Coriolis f1.03×10⁻⁴

Governing equation

v_{g} = \frac{1}{ρ f} \frac{\partial p}{\partial n} = 24.2 m/s, f = 2Ω sin (45°) = 1.03 \times 1 0^{- 4} s^{- 1}

Reading this result: The wind blows along the isobars, not across them: the pressure-gradient force toward low pressure is exactly cancelled by the Coriolis force, leaving a steady flow parallel to the lines.

Runs locally in your browser — free forever. Scale to the cloud when reality gets heavy.

or unlock everything with Pro →

Also for:Students Researchers Engineers Hobbyists & Makers K-12 Students First Responders General version →

More with Geostrophic Wind

Geostrophic Wind for a thunderstorm Geostrophic Wind for a hurricane track Geostrophic Wind for a tornado Geostrophic Wind for a heat wave Geostrophic Wind for a cold front Geostrophic Wind for a sea breeze Geostrophic Wind for a flash flood Geostrophic Wind for a snowstorm

Frequently asked questions

Is this good for educators?: Yes — this version of "Geostrophic Wind for a microburst" is framed for educators teaching it to a class. Drop a live demo into a lecture or assign it as a shareable link — no lab installs.
Do I need to install anything?: No. It runs in any modern browser, free, with no account required.