Cyclogenesis in the lee of the Alps: A case study

Buzzi, A.; Tibaldi, S.

doi:10.1002/qj.49710444004

Cited by 214 publications

(107 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…This is the case of many shallow, weak and stationary lee cyclones, which are generated as a result of the interaction of the air flow with the orography (Bessemoulin et al, 1993). However, in some cases, as the Genoa cyclogenesis, lee depressions evolve into intense and deep cyclones, where lower and upper levels interact in rather complex processes (Buzzi and Tibaldi, 1978).…”

Section: Spatial Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This pattern is likely related to a thermal effect of the relative warm sea surrounded by cold land. However, other effects as lee cyclogenesis and baroclinic instability are also related to winter cyclogenesis in the Mediterranean (Buzzi and Tibaldi, 1978;Speranza et al 1985). Trigo et al (2002) showed that The selected regions are marked with red boxes.…”

Section: Spatial Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Climatology of Mediterranean cyclones using the ERA‐40 dataset

Campins

Genovés

Picornell

et al. 2011

Intl Journal of Climatology

147

165

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ABSTRACT:The generation of cyclone climatologies has recently received a renewed interest. Cyclones are closely related to the climate of certain regions, and thus, their variability is one of the key points in current climate research. The Mediterranean is a region with high density of cyclones, but due to its location and its particular morphology, cyclones are subject to large spatial and seasonal variability. Moreover, some cyclones are related to hazardous weather events, in particular, heavy precipitation and strong winds. Improved knowledge of Mediterranean cyclones would contribute to the improvement of the forecasts of such damaging events. In this study, objective detection and tracking algorithms are used on the ERA-40 reanalysis to derive a climatology of surface cyclones for the Mediterranean region. The detection algorithm is also applied at various vertical levels, characterizing the three-dimensional structure of the cyclones, and allowing to derive their vertical thickness. The relatively high spatial resolution, but mainly the long period (45 years) makes the ERA-40 reanalysis especially suitable for the generation of a cyclone climatology. The aim of this study is twofold. First, a detailed description of the Mediterranean surface cyclones is obtained. This includes the spatial and seasonal variability and some of their main individual features, like the intensity, size, vertical thickness and life cycle. Moreover, some regions with a large cyclogenetic frequency are studied in detail. Second, the results of the present climatology are compared with many other studies. The qualitative comparison indicates a general agreement with most of previous climatologies. However, as a consequence of the ERA-40 resolution, the comparison with high-resolution cyclone datasets shows a shortcoming related to the detection of small cyclones. Nevertheless, it is concluded that the current climatology depicts a comprehensive view of the synoptic and sub-synoptic cyclonic activities in the Mediterranean.

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Section: Spatial Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Spatial Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climatology of Mediterranean cyclones using the ERA‐40 dataset

Campins

Genovés

Picornell

et al. 2011

Intl Journal of Climatology

147

165

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Cyclogenesis in the Mediterranean region is primarily caused by orographic effects (Buzzi and Tibaldi, 1978). Nevertheless, latent heat release is also important for cyclogenesis intensification, especially when high SSTs destabilize air masses and favor the release of latent heat (Trigo et al, 2002).…”

Section: A Sanna Et Al: Effect Of a High-resolution Marine Model Onmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coupled atmosphere ocean climate model simulations in the Mediterranean region: effect of a high-resolution marine model on cyclones and precipitation

Sanna¹,

Lionello²,

Gualdi³

2013

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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In this study we investigate the importance of an eddy-permitting Mediterranean Sea circulation model on the simulation of atmospheric cyclones and precipitation in a climate model. This is done by analyzing results of two fully coupled GCM (general circulation models) simulations, differing only for the presence/absence of an interactive marine module, at very high-resolution (~ 1/16°), for the simulation of the 3-D circulation of the Mediterranean Sea. Cyclones are tracked by applying an objective Lagrangian algorithm to the MSLP (mean sea level pressure) field. On annual basis, we find a statistically significant difference in vast cyclogenesis regions (northern Adriatic, Sirte Gulf, Aegean Sea and southern Turkey) and in lifetime, giving evidence of the effect of both land–sea contrast and surface heat flux intensity and spatial distribution on cyclone characteristics. Moreover, annual mean convective precipitation changes significantly in the two model climatologies as a consequence of differences in both air–sea interaction strength and frequency of cyclogenesis in the two analyzed simulations

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“…Another example is the bora wind, which blows in a northeasterly direction across a series of topographical channels into the north Adriatic Sea. Several coastal areas of the central (e.g., the Gulf of Genoa) and eastern (e.g., Cyprus island) Mediterranean are also centers of topographically induced intense cyclogenesis (e.g., Buzzi and Tibaldi 1978;Alpert et al 1995). Such events, in addition to having catastrophic consequences on different sectors of society, dramatically influence the Mediterranean ocean circulation (Herrmann and Somot 2008;Durrieu de Madron et al 2013) through deep-and bottom-water formation.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Med-CORDEX Initiative for Mediterranean Climate Studies

Ruti

Somot

Giorgi

et al. 2016

Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society

263

211

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The Mediterranean is expected to be one of the most prominent and vulnerable climate change “hotspots” of the twenty-first century, and the physical mechanisms underlying this finding are still not clear. Furthermore, complex interactions and feedbacks involving ocean–atmosphere–land–biogeochemical processes play a prominent role in modulating the climate and environment of the Mediterranean region on a range of spatial and temporal scales. Therefore, it is critical to provide robust climate change information for use in vulnerability–impact–adaptation assessment studies considering the Mediterranean as a fully coupled environmental system. The Mediterranean Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment (Med-CORDEX) initiative aims at coordinating the Mediterranean climate modeling community toward the development of fully coupled regional climate simulations, improving all relevant components of the system from atmosphere and ocean dynamics to land surface, hydrology, and biogeochemical processes. The primary goals of Med-CORDEX are to improve understanding of past climate variability and trends and to provide more accurate and reliable future projections, assessing in a quantitative and robust way the added value of using high-resolution and coupled regional climate models. The coordination activities and the scientific outcomes of Med-CORDEX can produce an important framework to foster the development of regional Earth system models in several key regions worldwide.

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Cyclogenesis in the lee of the Alps: A case study

Cited by 214 publications

References 11 publications

Climatology of Mediterranean cyclones using the ERA‐40 dataset

Climatology of Mediterranean cyclones using the ERA‐40 dataset

Coupled atmosphere ocean climate model simulations in the Mediterranean region: effect of a high-resolution marine model on cyclones and precipitation

Med-CORDEX Initiative for Mediterranean Climate Studies

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