This project is funded by NSF OPP grant 0240948

Objective

To better understand aspects of cyclone development on the Arctic and links between regional development processes and Arctic hydrology

Collaborators

Mark Serreze is the PI, and Roger Barry is the Co-PI.

Project Summary

Use is being made of output from atmospheric reanalyses and a regional climate model. The primary focus area is the northern North Atlantic. The dominant feature of the mean sea level circulation in this region during winter is the Icelandic Low (IL) and an associated pressure trough extending far into the Arctic. The region encompassing the IL and this trough can be broadly thought of as representing the terminus of the North Atlantic cyclone track. It is one of the most synoptically active and variable areas of the planet, especially during winter. The region is particularly important in representing a primary gateway for the transport of heat and moisture into the Arctic. The IL and surrounding region modulates the Arctic's freshwater budget, especially through impacts on net precipitation over the Arctic Ocean and the export of sea ice and low salinity waters out of the Arctic and into the North Atlantic via Fram Strait, between northern Greenland and Svalbard. This flux is the principal mechanism by which freshwater inputs to the Arctic Ocean from river runoff, Bering Strait inflow, and net precipitation over the Arctic Ocean are balanced. The flux is closely linked to the SLP gradient in the vicinity of the strait, which varies with the strength and location of the IL and high-latitude pressure trough. Impacts of Greenland's orography are prominent in the synoptic complexity of the region. Typical synoptic situations include splitting, or "bifurcation" of cyclones at the southern tip of Greenland, orographic cyclogenesis in the lee of Greenland, at the location of the mean IL, and deepening of pre-existing systems near the IL.

Related Resources

None

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