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Metcheck Forecast Room - Meteorological Discussions
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Sometimes, the front page articles just aren't big enough to cover all our thoughts and ramblings on the developing weather.
By using graphical analysis from the weather models, as well as full forecasting terminology, you can see how events are being discussed here at Metcheck. The discussions aim to provide unparalleled access to forecasters thoughts and you may even start talking like us too ;-)
Here are the latest discussions from the Metcheck forecasters.
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| Current Discussions (PREMIUM ONLY) |
| Ridges & Troughs...What Do They Mean? |
Just like any profession there are numerous terms and phrases that describe something. In meteorology two very important terms that are used a lot are 'ridge' and 'trough'. So what do they mean?...
The RIDGE:
The above chart is showing the windspeeds within the upper regions of the atmosphere. Meteorologists look at this level of the atmosphere to find ridges and troughs within the jet stream. Of interest in this particular image is a substantial ridge within the central North Atlantic. Notice how the wind is flowing up towards the southern regions of Greenland and then down into the UK region. This is a perfect example of a ridge in the jet stream.
So what's its significance?. A ridge within the upper levels of the atmosphere signal a surface area of high pressure. We all know that high pressure signals the likelihood of settled conditions. So in meteorology a sentance like the following may be read;
"An upper ridge in the jet stream over the UK is likely over the coming few days"
This signals surface high pressure and settled conditions across the UK.
The TROUGH:
On the same chart, first find Scandinavia. Once you've found Scandinavia you're looking directly at an upper level trough in the atmosphere.
This time the wind flow is coming down from the Arctic (east of Greenland) down into the UK and then across Germany and then back northwards over parts of Western Russia. This is a large and dominating upper level trough.
The trough is essentially the opposite of a ridge. The upper level trough is associated with surface low pressure and unsettled conditions. So whenever a 'trough' is being discussed it is directly related to unsettled conditions at the surface.
So there we have it. Two very simply words, but extremely important in the general everyday discussion of meteorology.
FORECASTER: HUGO
Discussion Added : 27 August 2007 |
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