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Synoptic conditions of extreme windstorms over Switzerland in a changing climate

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Abstract

This paper reports on a method using composites for studying synoptic conditions of a series of windstorm events selected on the basis of maximum wind speeds in Switzerland. The composite storm-averaged conditions indicate how flow fields, as well as related surface conditions, are organised so as to produce high wind speeds near the surface. On average, high winds in Switzerland, mainly generated by transient synoptic-scale eddies, are characterised by a minimum in the mean sea level pressure field over southern Norway, anticyclonic conditions south of 35°N and a steep pressure gradient over continental western Europe. The geopotential aloft has a predominant zonal structure, producing high winds between 45°N and 50°N over the eastern Atlantic and further inland; the jet stream has its maximum speed at 50°N over the Celtic Sea and Brittany at 250 hPa. Close to the surface, large temperature contrasts between the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea and the cooler continent are diagnosed. The results thus obtained differ to those produced by other methods based on the analysis of deep cyclones or of strong vorticity in the northern North Atlantic Ocean basin. Differences of the composite mean synoptic conditions for current (1961–1990) and future climate (2071–2100) as simulated by the Global Climate Model HadAM3H in the context of the EU PRUDENCE project indicate that windstorms in a warmer world are generated by a subtle modification of the atmospheric baroclinicity, especially over the ocean and where greater ocean-continent temperature contrasts are simulated during winters. However, there are no signs of reduced storm activity as the climate warms by the end of the twenty-first century.

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Acknowledgments

The work reported in this paper is based on discussions during meetings of the EU PRUDENCE and ENSEMBLES projects that have been very useful in formulating the ideas and concepts discussed here. I would also like to thank two anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments which helped improve the manuscript. I finally thank the climate modelling team of ESCER at Montréal who developed and provide the CRCM used in this study.

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  1. Climatic Change and Climate Impacts, University of Geneva, 7 route de Drize, Geneva, Switzerland

    Stéphane Goyette

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Goyette, S. Synoptic conditions of extreme windstorms over Switzerland in a changing climate. Clim Dyn 36, 845–866 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-010-0820-4

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