Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere

Understanding Storm Track Shifts Across a Range of Timescales

Storm tracks are regions where extratropical cyclones occur most frequently, they control weather and climate in the extratropics. Storm tracks shift latitudinally in response to energetic perturbations across a range of timescales. On seasonal timescales, the Northern Hemisphere storm track shifts poleward between winter and summer and equatorward between summer and winter. On interannual timescales, the storm tracks shift equatorward in response to El Nino minus La Nina conditions. On centennial timescales, climate models project the storm tracks will shift poleward in response to increased CO2 concentration. Here we present an energetic framework that connects energetic perturbations to storm track position and use it to understand storm track shifts across a range of timescales.