Combined wind sensors

Anemometers (ancient Greek: ἄνεμος anemos 'wind' and μέτρον métron 'measure') or wind meters are various measuring instruments for the local measurement of the speed of a flow field, in particular the wind speed.

The oldest known anemometer is the wind plate, also known as a plate anemometer, a vibrating plate anemometer, a pressure plate anemometer, or a deflection plate anemometer. This instrument was probably invented in 1450 by the Italian architect Leon Battista Alberti and later described by Leonardo da Vinci around 1500 in a sketch based on his own design.

In 1846, astronomer Thomas Romney Robinson measured wind speed using a newly developed hemispherical anemometer. This design initially consisted of only two hemispherical cups, but later, for a more even rotational force, another pair of cups was added, arranged crosswise. This type of anemometer is still in use today for meteorological measurements. It is probably the most well-known design of anemometer.

A wind direction indicator, also known as a wind vane, weather vane, or, more specifically, an anemoscope, is an indicating instrument for determining wind direction. It relies on a movable measuring element that aligns itself with the dynamic pressure of the wind.

A wind direction indicator can be considered a static system with only one mechanically stable equilibrium state. The input element is the vane surface, which is arranged asymmetrically to the axis of rotation and on which the wind exerts a torque if it is not aligned parallel to the wind direction. The output element is the wind direction indicator itself, since its orientation corresponds to the wind direction (see also directional stability).