I have an exam in oceanography coming up and I'm having a little trouble understanding directions. For example in my review sheet he asks question like this:

Question

In what compass direction does the coriolis force act in the following situations:

An object moving west at 22 degrees north

and

An object moving southeast at 68 degrees south

Can anyone explain to me in a simpler way how to find the directions coriolis acts in?

Thank you

Answer 1

The Coriolis force is always perpendicular (and proportional) to the velocity vector. Whether it goes to the right or left relative to the velocity vector depends upon in which direction the coordinate system is turning. In the Earth's northern hemisphere, the force is 90 degrees to the right of the velocity vector.

For a more detailed explanation, see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coriolis_effect