Open AccessHow the Madden‐Julian Oscillation affects North American weather
Author(s) -
Schultz Colin
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
eos, transactions american geophysical union
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.316
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 2324-9250
pISSN - 0096-3941
DOI - 10.1002/2014eo220010
Subject(s) - snow , climatology , jet stream , arctic , low pressure area , environmental science , the arctic , winter storm , jet (fluid) , geography , meteorology , oceanography , atmospheric pressure , geology , physics , thermodynamics
The unusual weather in the United States during the winter of 2013–2014—when the West stayed hot and dry, the Northeast was battered by Arctic winds, and the South was blanketed in snow—was caused in part by an atmospheric phenomenon that blocked normal weather patterns from reaching the West Coast. The jet stream, forced to flow around a stable high‐pressure system, became curvier than normal. Over the eastern Pacific, the jet stream flowed far to the north before turning south over Alaska, bringing cold Arctic air to the Midwest.