A dynamical link between deep Atlantic extratropical cyclones and intense Mediterranean cyclones

Shira Raveh-Rubin, Emmanouil Flaounas

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Breaking of atmospheric Rossby waves has been previously shown to lead to intense Mediterranean cyclones, one of the most prominent environmental risks in the region. Wave breaking may be enhanced by warm conveyor belts (WCBs) associated with extratropical cyclones developing over the Atlantic Ocean. More precisely, WCBs supply the upper troposphere with air masses of low potential vorticity that, in turn, amplify ridges and thus favor Rossby wave breaking. This study identifies the mechanism that connects Atlantic cyclones and intense mature Mediterranean cyclones through ridge amplification by WCBs, and validates its climatological relevance. Using European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA-Interim reanalyses and a feature-based approach, we analyze the 200 most intense Mediterranean cyclones for the years 1989–2008 and show that their majority (181 cases) is indeed associated with this mechanism upstream. Results show that multiple Atlantic cyclones are associated with each case of intense Mediterranean cyclone downstream. Moreover, the associated Atlantic cyclones are particularly deeply intensifying compared with climatology.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)215-221
Number of pages7
JournalAtmospheric Science Letters
Volume18
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2017
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Atmospheric Science

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