Characteristics of the low‐level temperature inversion along the Alaskan Arctic coast
Abstract The climatological characteristics of low‐level tropospheric temperature inversion along the Alaskan Arctic coast are examined from a 10‐year record of surface and upper‐air meteorological data at Barrow and Barter Island, Alaska. The meteorology at the two stations is found to be remarkabl...
| Published in: | International Journal of Climatology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
1990
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/joc.3370100509 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Fjoc.3370100509 https://rmets.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/joc.3370100509 |
| Summary: | Abstract The climatological characteristics of low‐level tropospheric temperature inversion along the Alaskan Arctic coast are examined from a 10‐year record of surface and upper‐air meteorological data at Barrow and Barter Island, Alaska. The meteorology at the two stations is found to be remarkably similar; surface‐based inversions occur nearly half of the time, but even in the winter months inversions are frequently based up to 200 m above the surface. Median inversion depths range from 250m to 850m, with median temperature differences across the inversion ranging from 2°C to 11°C. In March and April when the inversion is strongest, the lowest levels frequently erode. This indicates that the transient character of the inversion reduces its effectiveness as a barrier to vertical mixing. The inversion depth closely follows the annual cloud‐cover cycle, demonstrating that the development and maintenance of the inversion is a result of complex interactions between radiative forcing, synoptic activity, and sea‐ice dynamics. |
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