Synoptic climatology of atlantic coast North-Easters

A classification of extratropical storms in the north-western Atlantic Ocean is developed based upon the storm's origin, track, and intensification. All storms producing at least 1.6-m deep-water waves at Cape Hatteras, North Carolina from 1943 to 1984 are included. Eight distinct storm types are identified, and their seasonality, interannual variation, and relationship to a previously devised storm-intensity scale are discussed. The most dangerous storms are cyclones which originate either over Florida or north of Cuba from October through to April, travel northward, and are blocked by a stagnating anticyclone over New England or the North Atlantic. Coastal storm frequencies declined from the mid-1960s through to the mid-1970s and increased through to 1984, but the frequency of potentially damaging storms has increased since 1965.

[1]  R. Simpson,et al.  The hurricane and its impact , 1981 .

[2]  P. Michaels,et al.  Climatic change in mixed-layer trajectories over large regions , 1992 .

[3]  P. Hess,et al.  Some Remarks on the Climatology of Blocking Action , 1951 .

[4]  S. Colucci.  Winter Cyclone Frequencies over the Eastern United States and Adjacent Western Atlantic , 1976 .

[5]  John R. Mather,et al.  Coastal Storms of the Eastern United States , 1964 .

[6]  R. E. Davis,et al.  Climatological variations in the Northern Hemisphere circumpolar vortex in January , 1992 .

[7]  William G. Nickling,et al.  The relationship of weather types to dust storm generation in Arizona (1965–1980) , 1986 .

[8]  J. Mather,et al.  Storm Damage Hazard Along the East Coast of the United States , 1967 .

[9]  R. Rohli,et al.  Florida Citrus Freezes and Polar Anticyclones in the Great Plains , 1991 .

[10]  B. Hayden.  Secular Variation in Atlantic Coast Extratropical Cyclones , 1981 .

[11]  L. Gamage,et al.  CYCLONE FREQUENCIES IN THE UNITED STATES1 FOR THE PERIOD 1905 TO 1954 , 1956 .

[12]  J. Namias,et al.  Large-Scale Changes in North Pacific and North American Weather Patterns in Recent Decades , 1982 .

[13]  Brent Yarnal,et al.  Synoptic Climatology in Environmental Analysis: A Primer , 1994 .

[14]  K. M. Zishka,et al.  The Climatology of Cyclones and Anticyclones over North America and Surrounding Ocean Environs for January and July, 1950–77 , 1980 .

[15]  W. Klein.  THE FREQUENCY OF CYCLONES AND ANTICYCLONES IN RELATION TO THE MEAN CIRCULATION , 1958 .

[16]  B. Hayden.  Storm Wave Climates at Cape Hatteras, North Carolina: Recent Secular Variations , 1975, Science.

[17]  L. H. Horn,et al.  Northern Hemisphere extratropical cyclone activity for four mid‐season months , 1984 .

[18]  J. Namias,et al.  North American Influences on the Circulation and Climate of the North Atlantic Sector , 1976 .

[19]  Clayton H. Reitan.  Frequencies of Cyclones and Cyclogenesis for North America, 1951–1970 , 1974 .

[20]  R. A. Muller,et al.  Estimates of Climatic Air Quality Potential at Shreveport, Louisiana , 1985 .

[21]  Daniel F. Rex,et al.  Blocking Action in the Middle Troposphere and its Effect upon Regional Climate II. The Climatology of Blocking Action , 1950 .

[22]  J. Miller,et al.  CYCLOGENESIS IN THE ATLANTIC COASTAL REGION OF THE UNITED STATES , 1946 .

[23]  Clayton H. Reitan.  Trends in the Frequencies of Cyclone Activity over North America , 1979 .

[24]  Recent Secular Variations in Mid-Atlantic Winter Extratropical Storm Climate , 1975 .