A weather vane only works if wind can flow freely and is not obstructed. This is why these instruments are usually placed at the highest point on a structure like a church or a house. They are used to show the direction from which wind blows. In the past, farmers relied on weathervanes whereas today technological advances have given us instruments to accurately measure wind speed and direction.
The earliest weather vane in recorded history was built by the astronomer, Andronicus. It honored the Greek God Triton and was a combination of man and fish. In ancient Greece and Rome, weather vanes depicting the gods adorned the dwellings of wealthy landowners.
With the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity, a rooster began to appear on church steeples. It reminded believers of the need to be watchful because Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny him before the cock crowed three times. The tail of a rooster is just the right shape to catch the wind and its force is greater on the tail than the head. It gets pushed away so the head turns into the wind. This is probably why the rooster design remains so popular to this day. It also has symbolic relevance in that it welcomes the dawn and the triumph of light over darkness.
The weather vane is shaped aerodynamically. The one end of its pointer is thicker than the other and has a larger surface area. This enables it to catch wind and turn the pointer. The large end points to where wind is going and the small end to where it is coming from.
A weather vane that is shaped correctly and has balance will spin freely. If it is not precisely balanced, it will shift or topple and even stop moving. The weight needs to be equally distributed on either side of the axis or the vane will not spin freely. Some modern weather vanes do not have the necessary weight balance. They are designed more as architectural ornaments than for determining wind direction.
Directional markers are fixed below the pointer. They indicate north, south, east and west. When the arrow points towards the west, the marker for west shows that wind is blowing from that direction and toward the east. If the marker shows north, wind is blowing from the north and toward the south.
When people see wind direction, they start noticing patterns and when they put this together with knowledge about the local climate, they start being able to make simple forecasts. They may notice, for example, that wind from a certain direction usually brings rain or that wind from another direction may mean that a storm is coming.
Determining wind direction and what this meant was a daily consideration for farmers. Their first-hand observations, experience and local knowledge helped them in this exercise. Today, we do not need weather vanes for this reason but they continue to retain their appeal. A wide variety are available today in many different designs. Those that are designed correctly, still work in exactly the same way as they have through the centuries whilst others are valued for their aesthetic appeal.
The earliest weather vane in recorded history was built by the astronomer, Andronicus. It honored the Greek God Triton and was a combination of man and fish. In ancient Greece and Rome, weather vanes depicting the gods adorned the dwellings of wealthy landowners.
With the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity, a rooster began to appear on church steeples. It reminded believers of the need to be watchful because Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny him before the cock crowed three times. The tail of a rooster is just the right shape to catch the wind and its force is greater on the tail than the head. It gets pushed away so the head turns into the wind. This is probably why the rooster design remains so popular to this day. It also has symbolic relevance in that it welcomes the dawn and the triumph of light over darkness.
The weather vane is shaped aerodynamically. The one end of its pointer is thicker than the other and has a larger surface area. This enables it to catch wind and turn the pointer. The large end points to where wind is going and the small end to where it is coming from.
A weather vane that is shaped correctly and has balance will spin freely. If it is not precisely balanced, it will shift or topple and even stop moving. The weight needs to be equally distributed on either side of the axis or the vane will not spin freely. Some modern weather vanes do not have the necessary weight balance. They are designed more as architectural ornaments than for determining wind direction.
Directional markers are fixed below the pointer. They indicate north, south, east and west. When the arrow points towards the west, the marker for west shows that wind is blowing from that direction and toward the east. If the marker shows north, wind is blowing from the north and toward the south.
When people see wind direction, they start noticing patterns and when they put this together with knowledge about the local climate, they start being able to make simple forecasts. They may notice, for example, that wind from a certain direction usually brings rain or that wind from another direction may mean that a storm is coming.
Determining wind direction and what this meant was a daily consideration for farmers. Their first-hand observations, experience and local knowledge helped them in this exercise. Today, we do not need weather vanes for this reason but they continue to retain their appeal. A wide variety are available today in many different designs. Those that are designed correctly, still work in exactly the same way as they have through the centuries whilst others are valued for their aesthetic appeal.
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