Unusually Deep Wintertime Cirrus Clouds Observed over the Alaskan Subarctic

Abstract

Unusually deep wintertime cirrus clouds at altitudes exceeding 13.0 km above mean sea level (MSL) were observed at Fairbanks, Alaska(64.86N, 147.85W, 0.300 km MSL), over a 12-h period beginning near 1200 UTC 1 January 2017. Such elevated cirrus cloud heights are far more typical of warmer latitudes and, in many instances, associated with convective outflow, as opposed to early winter over the subarctic on a day featuring barely 4 h of local sunlight. In any other context, they could have been confused for polar stratospheric clouds, which are a more common regional/seasonal occurrence approaching such elevated heights. The mechanics of this unique event are documented, including the thermodynamic and synoptic environments that nurtured and sustained cloud formation.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2018
Accession Number
AD1100498

Entities

People

  • David A. Peterson
  • Ellsworth J. Welton
  • Gilberto J. Fochesatto
  • James R. Campbell
  • Jared W. Marquis
  • Jason L. Tackett
  • Jasper R. Lewis
  • Mark Vaughan
  • Mayra I. Oyola
  • Sebastian A. Stewart
  • Simone Lolli

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Masses
  • Atmospheric Sciences
  • California
  • Cirrus Clouds
  • Climate
  • Climate Change
  • Environment
  • Maryland
  • Measurement
  • Meteorology
  • North America
  • North Dakota
  • Observation
  • Ridges
  • Sea Level
  • Thermodynamic Properties
  • United States

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Remote Sensing.
  • Polar and Arctic Studies
  • Theoretical Analysis.

Technology Areas

  • Space