Wind directions obs confusing

[blizzard]

Sorry, this is kind of a stupid question (ok, not kind of dumb) but I've just noticed something the past few days.

I check on one site to see what the weather's like and it's showing the wind at, for example, W 25 km/h.

Then I go to another site, which is supposedly taking it's data from the same place, and it's showing the wind as 25 km/h from the W.

So when it's showing the wind being W xx km/h, is that meaning that it's coming from the W or that it's blowing W?

 

[wxmanjerry]

It indicates the wind is coming from the west.

Hope that helps.

 

[oldseadog]

Jerry is right about the answer.

Don't feel silly about any questions. My philosophy is that the only silly question is the one that nobody asked. When I was in the navy learning met, I would sit there and not say anything, and often what was going on, because I wasn't getting what was being taught, but I thought I was the only one who didn't understand and thus thought I would be ridiculed about it.

Well, once in a while someone would ask for clarification in the same way I was wanting but too timid to ask; this told me that there were others who wondered the same thing.

Now, even though I'm out of the navy, the questions still come. But because of those experiences, I ask them. And usually I find other people were wanting to ask the same thing.

Congratulations for asking a question that you thought was silly. It wasn't--a LOT of people don't really know (or care to know) what the wind direction means.

I like this part of the forum because I get to answer or research or even ask questions, myself. I hope other people come in here and ask questions that, though they may think they're silly, most assuredly are not.

That, and it gives me an outlet in which to flex my weather nerding muscle.