Which wind pattern is typically associated with cooler air flowing from inland to the coast at night?

• A. Sea breeze
• B. Trade wind
• C. Land breeze
• D. Monsoon

Answer: (C)

At night, land cools quickly while the sea stays relatively warmer, creating a temperature difference that makes cooler, denser air over land move toward the coast to replace the warmer air over the sea. This flow from inland to the coast is a land breeze. It’s the nighttime counterpart to the daytime sea breeze, which is driven by the land heating up and air moving from sea to land. Large-scale patterns like trade winds and monsoon describe broad climate behaviors, not the localized coastal breeze formed by nocturnal cooling.