Buzz
With Halloween fast approaching, it's only a matter of time before creepy soundtracks—complete with screams, clinking chains, and howling winds—start blaring from haunted houses and yard displays. While the sounds of human distress are frightening for clear reasons, what is it about a brisk autumn breeze that makes our skin crawl? In horror movies and ghost stories, these ghostly winds are often portrayed as sweeping through barren trees. Do the bare branches actually intensify the haunting wails, or is this just a spooky detail for added effect?
As Hank Green from SciShow explains in the video below, wind howls because it bends around obstacles like trees or buildings. When fast-moving air encounters something, like a tree, it splits as it rushes past, then merges again on the other side. Due to natural randomness, airspeed, and the tree's surface, one side of the wind will be slightly stronger, forcing the other gust aside. These two currents continue to interact in what could be described as an invisible wrestling match, with high-pressure airwaves and whirlpools mixing and causing vibrations in the air. If the wind is strong enough, this process results in the eerie noise that has become so familiar in horror films.
Leafy trees "absorb some of the air vibrations, softening the sound, but without leaves—like in the dead of winter or when the forest is completely bare—the howling can travel much farther," Green explains. "That's why a desolate, wind-swept forest on a stormy night sounds so much like the undead."
Discover more by watching the SciShow video below.
