Precipitation Distributions Associated with Cyclones Originating Over the Gulf of Mexico and Surrounding Coastal Regions
Abstract
An investigation of the evolution of precipitation patterns associated with intensity and movement of winter surface lows across the southeast United States was undertaken. A 24-year climatology (1960-1983) of the 66 storms producing wide areas of precipitation totals in excess of 25 mm revealed three dominant storm tracks. Six-hour totals of hourly precipitation data were objectively analyzed and contoured. Grid point values were extracted from the contour charts and compiled for all storms plotted along each track. Mean precipitation distribution charts and frequency of occurrence charts (for specified amounts) revealed the evolving precipitation field surrounding storms in each track. Precipitation maxima for storms tracking from the Gulf of Mexico to the Ohio Valley were found to extend across the Appalachians to the Atlantic coast, best explained by Miller's (1946) Type B cyclones and found to have occurred in 5 of the 12 cyclones following this inland track. Precipitation patterns for storms tracking along the Gulf coast across the Florida panhandle to the Atlantic coast suggest that the Atlantic Ocean joins the Gulf of Mexico as a second moisture source. The central Gulf coast area tended to receive the brunt of the precipitation from these lows. Multiple linear regression equations revealed the importance of storm longitude, surface geostrophic relative vorticity, and surface central pressure for forecasting various precipitation parameters.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA213644
Entities
People
- David I. Knapp
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology