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katabatic

[ kat-uh-bat-ik ]

adjective

, Meteorology.
  1. (of a wind or air current) moving downward or down a slope. Compare anabatic ( def 1 ).


katabatic

/ ˌkætəˈbætɪk /

adjective

  1. (of winds) blowing downhill through having become denser with cooling, esp at night when heat is lost from the earth's surface Compare anabatic
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


katabatic

/ kăt′ə-bătĭk /

  1. Relating to wind currents that blow down a gradient, especially down the slopes of a mountain or glacier. When air comes in contact with the cool surface of a glacier or the upper regions of a mountain or slope, the air cools, becomes dense, and blows downward. Katabatic winds are usually cool and are especially common at night in polar regions.
  2. Compare anabatic


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Word History and Origins

Origin of katabatic1

1915–20; < Greek katabatikós pertaining to going down, equivalent to kata- kata- + ba- (stem of baínein to go; basis ) + -tikos -tic
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Example Sentences

Cold katabatic winds blowing down a mountain, huffed from a glacier’s snout and said to be its spirit.

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katabasiskatabolism