However, when these temperature gradients decrease in just the right way, a weakened «double peak» jet stream arises with
the strongest jet stream winds located to the north and south of the mid-latitudes.
Strong jet stream winds have focused a narrow ribbon of moisture, like a river, into the West Coast.
Not exact matches
The heart of a
jet stream is a relatively narrow band of
strong wind a few hundred miles wide that can reach speeds of more than 200 miles per hour.
The orange and red arrows show the
strongest winds that make up the
jet stream.
The summer weather in the UK and northwest Europe is influenced by the position and strength of the Atlantic
jet stream — a ribbon of very
strong winds which are caused by the temperature difference between tropical and polar air masses.
The polar
jet stream can be several miles deep and more than 100 miles wide, with the
strongest winds typically 5 to 10 miles above the ground.
22 Cause and Effect La Nina Cause:
Stronger than normal trade
winds push warm water farther west Effect: Polar
jet stream is amplified, brings cold air to northwest.
Stronger mid-latitude westerly
wind maxima have occurred in both hemispheres in most seasons from at least 1979 to the late 1990s, and poleward displacements of corresponding Atlantic and southern polar front
jet streams have been documented.
Because the Rockies block the
wind at low levels, the result is a
strong westerly
jet stream aloft while at low levels the air east of the Rockies comes from elsewhere including the Gulf of Mexico when there is a pronounced southerly component ahead of cold fronts.
In response to the strengthened western ridge of atmospheric pressure, the
winds of the
jet stream usually also form a deeper,
stronger trough downstream.
The
jet stream has been particularly
strong, with estimated
winds of over 350 km per hour.
The region of
strongest winds, which occurs at the juncture of the tropical and polar air masses, is called the
jet stream.
Jet streams are relatively narrow corridors of particularly
strong winds, which correspond to the location of the polar front and other areas of
strong temperature contrast.