Open AccessDevelopment of localized damaging wind gusts associated with a frontal wave and mesoscale vortex across south Wales on 18 May 2015
Author(s) -
Young Martin V.,
Clark Matthew R.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
meteorological applications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 59
eISSN - 1469-8080
pISSN - 1350-4827
DOI - 10.1002/met.1677
Subject(s) - mesoscale meteorology , nowcasting , climatology , geology , circulation (fluid dynamics) , radar , meteorology , geography , oceanography , computer science , telecommunications , physics , thermodynamics
On 18 May 2015 there were reports of localized wind damage just north of Swansea in south Wales. Observations indicated the development of a mesoscale cyclonic circulation at the tip of a frontal wave which first formed just west of south Wales. This mesoscale circulation subsequently ran eastwards across south Wales around the time of the reported damage, accompanied by gale force gusts on its southern flank. The resulting system then evolved into a pronounced shallow cold frontal zone that propagated eastwards into southern England over the next few hours, bringing further gale force gusts. Observational data, including Doppler radar and 1 min surface observations, are combined to investigate the causes of this mesoscale circulation and synthesize the results into a conceptual model. The mesoscale development was found to share some of the characteristics of larger scale cyclonic systems that sometimes produce more widespread and sometimes severe wind‐related impacts. Recognition of the precursor synoptic environment may enable identification of similar features which, combined with Doppler radar data, may assist nowcasting of small areas of damaging winds.