Back to Search
Start Over
A climatology of wintertime low-level jets in Nares Strait
- Source :
- Polar Research, Vol 40, Iss 0, Pp 1-16 (2021)
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Norwegian Polar Institute, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Intense, southward low-level winds are common in Nares Strait, between Ellesmere Island and northern Greenland. The steep topography along Nares Strait leads to channelling effects, resulting in an along-strait flow. This research study presents a 30-year climatology of the flow regime from simulations of the COSMO-CLM climate model. The simulations are available for the winter periods (November–April) 1987/88 to 2016/17, and thus, cover a period long enough to give robust long-term characteristics of Nares Strait. The horizontal resolution of 15 km is high enough to represent the complex terrain and the meteorological conditions realistically. The 30-year climatology shows that LLJs associated with gap flows are a climatological feature of Nares Strait. The maximum of the mean 10-m wind speed is around 12 m s-1 and is located at the southern exit of Smith Sound. The wind speed is strongly related to the pressure gradient. Single events reach wind speeds of 40 m s-1 in the daily mean. The LLJs are associated with gap flows within the narrowest parts of the strait under stably stratified conditions, with the main LLJ occurring at 100–250 m height. With increasing mountain Froude number, the LLJ wind speed and height increase. The frequency of strong wind events (>20 m s-1 in the daily mean) for the 10 m wind shows a strong interannual variability with an average of 15 events per winter. Channelled winds have a strong impact on the formation of the North Water polynya.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 08000395 and 17518369
- Volume :
- 40
- Issue :
- 0
- Database :
- Directory of Open Access Journals
- Journal :
- Polar Research
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- edsdoj.55b1a70d1d0e499c9e1b254e8b7b794e
- Document Type :
- article
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v40.3622