Tr. Parish et al., ON THE ROLE OF THE ANTARCTIC CONTINENT IN FORCING LARGE-SCALE CIRCULATIONS IN THE HIGH SOUTHERN LATITUDES, Journal of the atmospheric sciences, 51(24), 1994, pp. 3566-3579
The Antarctic topography and attendant katabatic wind regime appear to
play a key role in the climate of the high southern latitudes. During
the nonsummer months, persistent and often times intense katabatic wi
nds occur in the lowest few hundred meters of the Antarctic atmosphere
. These slope flows transport significant amounts of cold air northwar
d and thereby modify the horizontal pressure field over the high south
ern latitudes. Three-year seasonal cycle numerical simulations using t
he NCAR Community Climate Model Version 1 (CCM1) with and without repr
esentation of the Antarctic orography were performed to explore the ro
le of the elevated terrain and drainage flows on the distribution and
evolution of the horizontal pressure field. The katabatic wind regime
is an important part of a clearly defined mean meridional circulation
in the high southern latitudes. The position and intensity of the atte
ndant sea level low pressure belt appears to be tied to the Antarctic
orography. The seasonal movement of mass in the high southern latitude
s is therefore constrained by the presence of the Antarctic ice sheet.
The semiannual oscillation of pressure over Antarctica and the high s
outhern latitudes is well depicted in the CCM1 only when the Antarctic
orography is included.