Journal
JOURNAL OF APPLIED METEOROLOGY AND CLIMATOLOGY
Volume 50, Issue 3, Pages 662-680Publisher
AMER METEOROLOGICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1175/2010JAMC2507.1
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Funding
- NSF [ANT 0739464]
- Office of Polar Programs (OPP)
- Directorate For Geosciences [0739464, 0739519] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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In September 2009, the first unmanned aerial vehicles were flown over Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica, to collect information regarding air-sea interactions. Prior to the field season, wind and temperature data from a local automatic weather station (AWS) were collected from 1993 to 2007 and compared with an August-October 2006-08 satellite cyclone analysis to place the September 2009 observations into a broader context. AWS wind data revealed a strong tendency toward downslope flow in the region regardless of season, as the majority (55%) of winds were from the west to northwesterly directions. Most winds observed at the site were less than 20 m s(-1), but 83% of the stronger winds were associated with downslope flow. Of 15 strong wind events (greater than 20 m s (1) for more than 10 h) evaluated during the cyclone analysis period, 100% occurred in the presence of a cyclone in the adjacent Ross Sea. Winter experienced the greatest number of strong wind events (68%), and summer had the least (4%). Most temperatures were between -15 degrees and -25 degrees C, with temperatures influenced by wind fluctuations. The cyclone analysis revealed that 64% of systems were comma shaped, and most cyclones (84%) within the Ross Sea were mesocyclones. A comparison of AWS data for Septembers 1993-2007 and September 2009 showed more strong wind events during 2009, while the cyclone analysis revealed a shift in cyclonic activity eastward. Reanalysis data comparing September 1993-2007 and September 2009 show an eastward shift in a deeper upper-level trough, indicating that September 2009 was an anomalous year.
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