The Cers, also called the Narbonnais by those who live southeast of Narbonne

Narbonne

Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea...

, is a very dry wind that is colder during the winter and warmer during the summer. Originating from moist Atlantic air-masses flowing across the Toulouse

Toulouse

Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...

 area, Cers become intensified through the Lauragais gap. They are frequent across the Aute reigon in south-western france. Exceptionally red sunsets and lenticularis clouds

Lenticular cloud

Lenticular clouds are stationary lens-shaped clouds that form at high altitudes, normally aligned perpendicular to the wind direction. Lenticular clouds can be separated into altocumulus standing lenticularis , stratocumulus standing lenticular , and cirrocumulus standing lenticular...

 are usually heralding the onset of the Cers. It is closely related to the Mistral

Mistral (wind)

The mistral is a strong, cold and usually dry regional wind in France, coming from the north or northwest, which accelerates when it passes through the valleys of the Rhone and the Durance Rivers to the coast of the Mediterranean around the Camargue region. It affects the northeast of the plain...

, but the term Cers refers specifically to the very strong wind in the bas-Languedoc

Languedoc

Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...

.
The opposite to this wind type is the Marin

Marin (wind)

The Marin is a warm, moist wind in the Gulf of Lion of France, blowing from the southeast or south-southeast onto the coast of Languedoc and Roussillon. It brings rain to this region which it has picked up crossing the Mediterranean, and also can bring coastal fog...

 a south east wind which occurs across the Imberian Perninsular.

See also

Tramontane

Tramontane

Tramontane is a classical name for a northern wind. The exact form of the name and precise direction varies from country to country. The word came to English from Italian tramontana, which developed from Latin trānsmontānus , "beyond the mountains/across the mountains", referring to the alps in...