Extratropical Cyclones

Overview

Extratropical cyclones are large-scale low-pressure weather systems that form outside the tropics, typically along the boundaries between cold polar air and warmer subtropical air. Driven by horizontal temperature contrasts rather than the warm-core processes of tropical cyclones, they develop along frontal zones in the middle and high latitudes and can span hundreds to thousands of kilometres. These systems are a dominant feature of mid-latitude weather, producing strong winds, extensive cloud and precipitation, and frequently severe conditions such as heavy rain, snowfall, and flooding, and they play a central role in transporting heat and moisture and shaping regional climate. The peer-reviewed research collected here, drawn from weather and climate scholarship, examines cyclonic systems and their structure. A study of a "Dragonhead" cyclone observed over the Falkland Islands describes a double Coté's spiral form, drawing a morphological comparison between the spiral structure of an atmospheric cyclone and that of a spiral galaxy. Such work illustrates how the spiral geometry and dynamics of large rotating weather systems are observed and analysed. This page gathers open-access research relevant to cyclones and the atmospheric processes that govern mid-latitude and extratropical storm systems.

Research published in this journal

2 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.

This page summarises published research for orientation; it is not medical or professional advice.

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