Why is the high-altitude wind called the jet stream?
The term “jet stream describes the ribbons of fast-moving air located five to eight miles above the Earth’s surface. The jet stream was first discovered by meteorologist Wasburo Ooishi in the 1920s during his studies of high-elevation wind patterns over Japan using weather balloons, but it wasn t until 1939 that German meteorologist H. Seilkopf used the term “jet stream” in a published scientific paper. American aviation pioneer Wiley Post is often credited with first flying within a jet stream. Learn more about jet streams on this USA TODAY resource page.
