The wind is the result of the movement of airmasses in the atmosphere that is caused mainly by the solar radiation, which isabsorbed and reflected in a different way by the different layers of theatmosphere and by the variety of types of surfaces existing on earth.
In thisway, the atmosphere warms unevenly, creating the circulation of the wind. Thedirection of the wind is determined by topographic effects and the rotation ofthe earth, a situation that makes knowledge of the dominant directionsimportant for the installation of wind turbines to produce electrical energyfrom this resource. One of the most important global wind systems is the TradeWinds, which have their origin in the greater warming in the equatorial region.In general, this system is active between latitudes 30 degrees north and 30degrees south, therefore it is of great relevance for the Central American Region.Wind Energy nowadays is used mostly to generateclean and safe energy, through the use of wind turbine generators (WTG), whichconsist of a mechanical system of rotation, provided with blades that with thehelp of a generator produce electrical energy. Wind turbines can meet small powerdemands or they can also be grouped together and form a wind farms (when thewind power generators are installed in rows) connected to the national electricsystem 1.1.
1 The Wind in Guatemala The Wind in Guatemalaconsists of a mixture of two wind phenomena, the trade winds and the sea breezewinds. The pattern of trade winds move with a component of the North (NNE, NE,NNO) during the months of October to February, due to a high pressure systemconcentration that is located during this period in the central part of theUnited States and its prolongation through the Gulf of Mexico and the YucatanPeninsula. These air currents enter from the territory of the Gulf of Mexicothrough the department of Izabal, in the NE side of Guatemala, and arechanneled between the Sierras del Merendón and Las Minas, in this way thesewinds are accelerated and achieve speeds a little higher in the east of thecountry, then They pass to the central zone and go to the northwest part of thecountry decreasing their speed considerably.
