WCLS

Wind Map is an animated map that shows near real-time wind conditions for the continental United States. By clicking on the map you can zoom in to reveal finer details. The brightness of the lines and rate of movement both indicate wind speed.

The map was created by two Google employees, Fernanda Viégas and Martin Wattenberg, research scientists who specialize in data visualization.  It is based on data generated by a National Weather Service short term forecast model and is updated once an hour.  If you look at it over the course of a day, a week, or a month you will see changes in the direction, speed and overall pattern of the wind.