This study investigates tropical cyclones of the past two decades (1990–2010) and the connection, if any, between their size and their ability to subsequently undergo rapid intensification (RI). Three different parameters are chosen to define the size of a tropical cyclone: radius of maximum wind (RMW), the average 34-knot (kt; 1 kt5 0.51m s) radius (AR34), and the radius of the outermost close...

A reanalysis of the Atlantic basin tropical storm and hurricane database (‘‘best track’’) for the period from 1921 to 1930 has been completed. This reassessment of the main archive for tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico was necessary to correct systematic biases and random errors in the data as well as to search for previously unrecognized systems. ...

A global climatology for rapid cyclone intensification has been produced from the second NCEP reanalysis (NCEP2), the 25-yr Japanese Reanalysis (JRA-25), and the ECMWF reanalyses over the period 1979–2008. An improved (combined) criterion for identifying explosive cyclones has been developed based on preexisting definitions, offering a more balanced, normalized climatological distribution. The ...

[1] A wavelet-based method is described for incorporating swaths of surface pressure derived from scatterometer measurements into surface pressure analyses obtained from the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The resulting modified pressure fields are used to identify low-pressure centers over the Southern Ocean and to build statistics of midlatitude cyclones during 7 y...

The advance in targeted observations of tropical cyclone movement is reviewed in this article. The targeted observations from DOTSTAR (Dropwindsonde Observations for Typhoon Surveillance near the Taiwan Region) in understanding and improving the tropical cyclone track predictability is highlighted, along with the progress of the field program of THORPEX-PARC in the summer of 2008. The impact of...

abstract

It is frequently stated that 70%–80% of western North Pacific tropical cyclones form ‘‘within the monsoon trough,’’ but without an objective definition of the term. Several definitions are tested here. When the monsoon trough (MT) is defined as the contiguous region where long-term (1988–2010) mean July– November 850-hPa relative vorticity is positive, 73% of all July–November tropical cyclones...

[1] Transport of boundary layer air to the free troposphere by cyclones during NASA’s Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) experiment is investigated. Airstreams responsible for boundary layer venting are diagnosed using results from a high-resolution meteorological model (MM5) together with in situ and remotely sensed chemical data. Hourly wind data from the MM5 are used...

One of the multiple approaches currently explored to mitigate the effects of hydro-meteorological hazardous events aims at improving the numerical weather forecasts. Under an ever increasing societal demand for cost cuts and more precise forecasts, targeted observations are currently receiving great attention within the operational weather community. The MEDEX project (http://medex.inm.uib.es) ...

The Adélie Land coastal region of Antarctica is one of the most prominent cyclogenesis regions in the Southern Hemisphere, and is adjacent to the continent’s most intense katabatic wind regime. However, the physical mechanisms responsible for cyclogenesis are not known. A manual analysis of cyclogenesis for the 2003–2005 period using output from the Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System (AMPS) ...