A Synoptic Climatology Of Alaska: Winter 700Mb Height Anomaly Patterns And Surface Climate Variability, 1956-1986

Thesis (M.S.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 1989An objective, descriptive study of Alaska's winter season synoptic climatology is compiled to identify regional monthly 700mb anomaly height patterns and to investigate monthly-mean surface temperature and precipitation variability during the thirty-year period from 1956/57 to 1985/86. A total of 78% of the period's monthly 700mb anomaly height maps are classified into ten Basic Anomaly Pattern categories by a Kirchhofer/Lund-based pattern classification scheme. Patterns are described in terms of frequency of occurrence, climate associations, and specific climate events (case study format). Examination of the winter monthly-mean temperature and precipitation records for the nine NOAA-designated Alaska climate divisions, and the Gulf of Alaska indicates a cool, dry period in the January record from 1964-1977. The winters following 1977 are the most variable of the thirty-year record. Seasonal-scale linear trends indicate a warmer, drier shift in the interior divisions and a warmer, wetter shift in the southern coastal divisions.