Doldrums are the calms of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The regions are characterized by low atmospheric pressure, high humidity, and thunderstorms. They are often associated with the source of tropical hurricanes, the sites of water spouts, and windlessness, sometimes alternating with sharp squalls. They are not to be confused with the calms of the horse latitudes.
Doldrums is an old English word meaning an unpleasant, depressed feeling. According to the Oxford English Dictionary there apparently arose a misunderstanding of the phrase “in the doldrums” used by some sailors, the human physiological state or condition of being transferred to a geographic belt or locality. Maury in 1855 used the term in this sense, and the usage became widespread. The colloquial French for doldrums is potau-noir, literally the boot-polish jar. Figuratively, être dans le pot-au-noirmeans exactly “to be in the doldrums”, hence the extension of the meaning to the equatorial calms later on. Most...
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Bibliography
Brunt, D., 1939. Physical and Dynamical Meteorology. London: Cambridge University Press.
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Cross-references
Atmospheric Circulation, Global
Intertropical Convergence Zone
Trade Winds and the Trade Wind Inversion
Tropical Cyclones
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Gentilli, J. (2005). Doldrums. In: Oliver, J.E. (eds) Encyclopedia of World Climatology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht . https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3266-8_69
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