The Role of High- and Low-Frequency Dynamics in Blocking Formation

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Abstract
Time evolutions of prominent blocking flow configurations over the North Pacific and Europe are compared based upon composites for the 30 strongest events observed during 27 recent winter seasons. Fluctuations associated with synoptic-scale migratory eddies have been filtered out before the compositing. A quasi-stationary wave train across the Atlantic is evident during the blocking amplification over Europe, while no counterpart is found to the west of the amplifying blocking over the North Pacific. Correlation between the tropopause-level potential vorticity (PV) and meridional wind velocity associated with the amplifying blocking is found to be negative over Europe in association with the anticyclonic evolution of the low-PV center, but it is almost zero over the North Pacific. Feedback from the synoptic-scale eddies, as evaluated in the form of 250-mb geopotential height tendency due to the eddy vorticity flux convergence, accounts for more than 75% of the observed amplification for the Pacif... Abstract Time evolutions of prominent blocking flow configurations over the North Pacific and Europe are compared based upon composites for the 30 strongest events observed during 27 recent winter seasons. Fluctuations associated with synoptic-scale migratory eddies have been filtered out before the compositing. A quasi-stationary wave train across the Atlantic is evident during the blocking amplification over Europe, while no counterpart is found to the west of the amplifying blocking over the North Pacific. Correlation between the tropopause-level potential vorticity (PV) and meridional wind velocity associated with the amplifying blocking is found to be negative over Europe in association with the anticyclonic evolution of the low-PV center, but it is almost zero over the North Pacific. Feedback from the synoptic-scale eddies, as evaluated in the form of 250-mb geopotential height tendency due to the eddy vorticity flux convergence, accounts for more than 75% of the observed amplification for the Pacif...

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