Weather and climate Antarctica’s role in the global atmospheric system

Abstract

The difference between weather and climate is time. Weather refers to the atmospheric conditions over a short period of time, from hours to a few days, whereas climate is the long-term pattern or average of weather in an area, region or across the globe. The weather and climate of Antarctica play an integral part in the global atmospheric system. This system produces a wide belt of low pressure surrounding Antarctica, which creates the westerly winds that drive atmospheric circulation over the Southern Ocean. Global circulation also produces a region of high atmospheric pressure over the South Pole, which leads to East Antarctica being dominated by cloudless skies and very little snow fall. By contrast, the coastal regions of Antarctica are relatively warm, cloudy and receive the most snow fall; they are sometimes exposed to easterly winds or the low-pressure systems that originate from the low-pressure belt that hugs the margin of the continent. The long, narrow Antarctic Peninsula extends the farthest north of any point of the continent. It reaches the region of persistent, strong westerly winds, which combined with the Peninsula’s maritime environment, produce weather and climate conditions quite distinct from those of East Antarctica.