Windcatcher

Windcatchers bring cooling breezes to the heart of a building, and can take a variety of forms. Typically, they consist of a capped tower with one open face directed towards the prevailing wind. This directs wind down the tower, providing natural airflow and therefore a cooling effect throughout the building. Some types have shutters on each side to take advantage of any gust or breeze. Underground shabestans use qanats to provide better cooling: a windcatcher opened whilst facing away from the wind creates low pressure to draw cool air up the tower from a water-cooled qanat below. In the ancient east, shabestans were often used to cool large communal spaces, but also for storage of goods and produce that needed to be kept cool. In contrast, the above ground yakhchals, large-domed evaporative coolers, were used purely for storage and could be kept cool enough for ice, even in the summer heat.