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PV Frontogenesis and Upper-Tropospheric Fronts

Huw C. Davies, +1 more
- 01 Jun 1998 - 
- Vol. 126, Iss: 6, pp 1528-1539
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TLDR
In this article, the upper-tropospheric fronts and frontogenesis are viewed from a potental vorticity (PV) perspective, and the concept of PV frontogenesis provides a concise dynamically based definition of upper-level frontal zones and a compact and transparent approach for diagnosing the frontogenesis.
Abstract
Upper-tropospheric fronts and frontogenesis are viewed from a potental vorticity (PV) perspective. The rudiments of this approach are to regard such a front as a zone of strong PV gradient on isentropic surfaces, and to treat the accompanying frontogenesis as the process whereby this gradient is enhanced on tropopause-transcending isentropic surfaces. A case study suggests that this concept of PV frontogenesis provides a concise dynamically based definition of upper-level frontal zones, and a compact and transparent approach for diagnosing the frontogenesis. The concept provides fresh insight on the dynamics of the upper-level fronts, and has the potential to shed light on related phenomena and processes.

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Journal ArticleDOI

Tropopause folds and cross-tropopause exchange: A global investigation based upon ECMWF analyses for the time period March 2000 to February 2001

TL;DR: In this article, a new methodology is proposed to identify folds of the dynamical tropopause (taken as the 2 potential vorticity (PV) units (pvu) isosurface) from global analysis data sets from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).
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An event‐based jet‐stream climatology and typology

TL;DR: In this paper, a novel climatology is developed for upper-tropospheric jet streams, which is complementary to and an alternative for the traditional depictions of the time-mean jets.
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The Development and Evolution of Two Atmospheric Rivers in Proximity to Western North Pacific Tropical Cyclones in October 2010

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the evolution of two zonally elongated atmospheric rivers (ARs) that produced >200 mm of rainfall over mountainous regions of Northern California in late October 2010.
Journal ArticleDOI

Influence of Upstream Diabatic Heating upon an Alpine Event of Heavy Precipitation

TL;DR: In this article, the authors considered the generation of one particular potential vorticity streamer that was itself a dynamical precursor of a heavy precipitation event in the Alpine region and showed that the streamer's parturition over the eastern North Atlantic is linked to a prior event of cyclo-and frontogenesis upstream over the western North Atlantic.
Journal ArticleDOI

Tropopause-Level Waveguides

TL;DR: In this article, the detection and examination of the along-flow extent and lateral confinement of the waveguides on the dynamic tropopause (i.e., iso-PV surface) and on Tropopause-cutting isentropic surfaces are given.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI

On the use and significance of isentropic potential vorticity maps

TL;DR: In this article, the Lagrangian conservation principle for potential vorticity and potential temperature is extended to take the lower boundary condition into account, where the total mass under each isentropic surface is specified.
Journal ArticleDOI

A new look at the ω‐equation

TL;DR: In this article, a simple, concise, one-term representation of the geostrophic forcing of age-ostrophic motion is presented. But this is achieved at the expense of neglecting another term which is dominant in frontal regions.
Journal ArticleDOI

A Review of the Structure and Dynamics of Upper-Level Frontal Zones

TL;DR: The development of structural models of upper-level frontal systems from the application of upper air data to analyses utilizing radiosonde and aircraft observations is reviewed in this paper, where the effects of turbulent processes and baroclinic waves on frontal structures and dynamics are examined.
Journal ArticleDOI

A study of a characteristic tpye of upper-level frontogenesis

TL;DR: In this paper, the potential vorticity on isentropic surfaces is used to study a characteristic type of upper-level frontogenesis, the development of a sloping stable layer marked by strong vertical wind shear and rapid upward decrease in humidity.
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