KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — More people in East Tennessee have noticed the windy week we have had and are wondering why this has been the case.

So, why is it so windy in East Tennessee this year?

WATE’s Chief Meteorologist Ken Weathers explains that there was an “omega block” pattern (shaped like the last letter of the Greek alphabet) across the United States this week.

These patterns can form when you have alternating areas of high and low pressure stacked up back-to-back.

For most of the week, we’ve seen an area of low pressure across the Western U.S., followed by an area of high pressure in the Central U.S. and yet another area of low pressure across the Eastern U.S. When several of these recurring patterns happen, it acts like a traffic jam across the Globe and weather patterns move very slowly.

Our brisk winds across East Tennessee were caused in part by the area of low pressure near the Great Lakes, which has counterclockwise winds combined with the high pressure over the Northern Plains, which has clockwise winds.

This combination of wind caused increased gusts across the region and since the overall pattern was moving so slowly, these brisk winds lasted for several days.

Weathers says that this omega block is breaking down as we head into the weekend which means the gusty winds will continue to decrease.

Make sure to keep up with the daily forecast by reading the WATE 6 Storm Team’s weather blog.