A diagnostic comparison of Alaskan and Siberian strong anticyclones

Abstract

Strong anticyclones have a significant impact on the cool season climate over mid- and high-latitude landmasses as they are typically accompanied by arctic air masses that can eventually move into populated midlatitude regions. Composite analyses of Alaskan and Siberian strong anticyclones based on sea level pressure (SLP) thresholds of 1050 and 1060 hPa, respectively, were performed to diagnose large-scale dynamical and thermodynamical parameters associated with the formation of strong anticyclones over these two climatologically favorable regions. The anticyclone composite analyses indicate the presence of moderate-tohigh-amplitude ridge-trough patterns associated with anticyclogenesis. These ridge-trough patterns are critical as they lead to dynamically favorable circumstances for rapid anticyclogenesis. The strong Alaskan anticyclone develops downstream of a highly amplified upper-tropospheric ridge and is associated with a region of strong tropospheric subsidence due to differential anticyclonic vorticity advection and cold-air advection over the anticyclone center. The strong Siberian anticyclone is associated with an upper-tropospheric pattern of lesser amplitude, suggesting that these dynamical factors, while still important, are less critical to its development. The relative location of elevated terrain features also appears to contribute greatly to the overall evolution of each of these anticyclones. © 2011 American Meteorological Society.