What causes the region of doldrums?
The word doldrums means dullness. It was used by the mariners of old sailing ships to name the region of calm air near the equator. Our meteorologists, however, suspect that some features of the region are far from calm. For it is the breeding place of tropical hurricanes. The system of prevailing winds circles the planet in we11 worn paths between the equator and the poles. One of the trickiest circles is the region of doldrums that shifts north and south of the equator with the seasons. The prevailing trade winds blow toward the equator from latitudes 30 degrees north and south. They come from the northeast and the southeast, and the zone of doldrums occurs where you would expect the two wind belts to meet in a head on collision. This region at or near the equator is heated by a steady diet of daily sunshine from directly overhead. The strips of land and the vast stretches of ocean below heat the air above them. Currents of this light, warm air expand and stream upward. For days and
