Word of the day: pitot

That massive windstorm that swept from the deep south to the northeast this week set a new wind gust record at the Mount Washington weather station in New Hampshire: 171mph/275kph. (Yeah, 171. That’s like a cat 5 hurricane.) Broke the old February record of 166mph/267kph, set in 1972.

Still a ways from the record-record. 231mph/371kph set back in 1932. That led me to wonder – how do you measure a 231mph wind gust? Answer: pitot.

At first glance, it looks like pilot. There’s a T in the middle, pitot, pronounced ‘pea-toe.’ The confusion is made worse by the fact that almost every airplane has both a pilot and a pitot. The pilot operates the thing. The pitot measures the aircraft’s speed.

Technically, a pitot tube – a narrow metal tube with holes at the business end. The wind goes into the holes and acts on a sensor on the other end of the tube. It’s named for engineer and inventor Henri Pitot, who devised the concept way back in 1695.

Makes sense, when you look at the big picture. If a pitot can clock a modern jet fighter at over 1,000mph, measuring a 231mph wind gust is child’s play.

word of the dayWord Wanderings