9. Regional distribution of meteorological hazards in the Russian Arctic
The graphs and contour plots developed in this study illustrate the spatial distribution of the number of days per year associated with various meteorological phenomena together with data describing their frequency at various polar stations. These figures have been used as the basis for specifying the regions of the Russian Arctic that are affected by various hazardous meteorological phenomena. The Russian Arctic has previously been divided into three large areas on the basis of general climatic characteristics [54]. The divisions consist of the western region including the Barents and Kara seas, the central region consisting of the area from the Taimyr Peninsula to Chetyryokhstolbovoy Island, and the eastern region from the Kolyma River to western Alaska.
The maximum frequency of very low air temperature typically occurs in the central sector, which is in the zone of Siberian High, while the maximum frequencies of high speed winds and snowstorms are observed in the western and eastern sectors, where there is a significant influence of cyclones from the north Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The differences among other parameters are less pronounced. The lowest air temperatures are observed in the central sector of the Russian Arctic. Average daily air temperatures of -50 degrees Celsius and below recorded there, and the maximum number of days with severe low temperatures (-40 degrees Celsius) reaches 40 per year. The maximum number of days with high speed winds and snowstorms exceeds 50 per year in the western sector. Heavy fogs are most often encountered along the coasts of the Kara and Chukchi seas. Heavy rains occur most frequently on Novaya Zemlya, on the coast of the Kara Sea, and over the south-eastern Chukchi Peninsula.
On the basis of the analysis of the entire data set considered in the preceding chapters, four types of zones have been selected to categorize the statistics and spatial distribution of hazardous meteorological phenomena in the Russian Arctic including high speed winds, snowstorms, frosts, fogs, rains and glaze. In each of these zones the phenomena mentioned above exert varying degrees of influence. The main parameter used in the characterization is the annually averaged number of days with dangerous (hazardous) phenomena. It was found that high speed winds and snowstorms exhibit the maximum variability, while the variability for the other phenomena is significantly less. As a result, the average number of days per year with high speed winds and snowstorms has been selected as the principal parameter to characterize the Russian Arctic. The data that represent the frequency of hazardous meteorological phenomena in the four types of zones are presented in Table 58 and in Figure 54. Their locations in the Arctic are described in Table 59 and shown in Figure 55.
Table 58Number of days per year with each phenomenon in the zones of types I through IV | ||||||||
Phenomenon | Number of days per year by zone | |||||||
I | II | III | IV | |||||
Ave | Max | Ave | Max | Ave | Max | Ave | Max | |
High speed wind | 35 | 62 | 12 | 32 | 3 | 15 | 1 | 8 |
Heavy snowstorm | 35 | 60 | 25 | 50 | 7 | 36 | 3 | 22 |
Severe frost | 1 | 20 | 3 | 40 | 5 | 20 | 1 | 8 |
Heavy fog | 2 | 32 | 4 | 26 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 30 |
Heavy rain | 0.1 | 2 | 0.5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0.05 | 1 |
Heavy glaze | 0.2 | 2 | 0.1 | 4 | 0.1 | 3 | 0.1 | 10 |
Figure 54. Number of days per year with highly dangerous meteorological phenomena according to zone type from I to IV. The numbers associated with each curve denote 1 - wind, 2 - frosts, 3 - snowstorms, 4 - fog, and 5 - rain.
Table 59Regions of hazardous meteorological phenomena in the Russian Arctic | |||
Region | Zone Type | Location | |
Western | First | ( I ) | Novaya Zemlya |
second | ( II ) | Franz Josef Land, Amderma, and the Kara Sea coast along the Taimyr Peninsula | |
fourth | ( IV ) | Marine area of the Barents and Kara Seas, the Central Arctic Basin, and the remainder of the Arctic continental zone | |
Central | first | ( I ) | Tiksi gulf |
third | ( III ) | New Siberian Islands | |
fourth | ( IV ) | Marine areas of the Laptev and East Siberian Seas, the Central Arctic Basin and the Arctic continental zone | |
Eastern | first | ( I ) | Pevek |
second | ( II ) | Coast of the Chukchi Sea and the coast of the eastern part of the East Siberian Sea | |
third | ( III ) | Wrangel Island | |
fourth | ( IV ) | Marine area of the East Siberian and Chukchi Seas and the Central Arctic Basin |
Figure 55. Locations of the various zone types in the Russian Arctic based on the frequency of hazardous meteorological phenomena. The types are designated I through IV.
Zones of type I , where the orographic effects have the greatest influence, are characterized by the highest frequency of high speed winds and snowstorms. Included in this category are Novaya Zemlya, the Tiksi gulf near the mouth of Lena river, and Pevek. Specifically local winds, such as in Novaya Zemlya "bora" and Pevekís "yuzhak", which can reach hurricane force, are observed in this type of zone. They extend only over the limited area, but they occur in all three regions. In zone I, from 20 to 40 days with wind speeds of 25 meters per second or higher are observed in different years. Included in this amount there are 15-20 days with wind speeds of 30 meters per second or higher. In addition, heavy rains can reach 40 millimeters for 12 hours, heavy fogs are observed 2 to 3 days per year, heavy glaze 20 millimeters or more in diameter are recorded on average 2 days every 10 years.
In type II zones the frequency of high winds and snowstorms is less than in type I zones but is still quite high. Included in this category are the Franz Josef Land archipelago, the coast of the Kara Sea and the Taimyr Peninsula, the eastern coastal area of the East Siberian Sea, and the Chukchi Peninsula. Zones of type II occur only in the eastern and western regions, but they include a considerable area.
In zones of type III, strong winds and snowstorms are several times less frequent. This category includes the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island. The type III zones cover only a relatively small area and occur only in the central and eastern regions.
All other areas of the Russian Arctic are classified as type IV, including the Central Arctic Basin and all unstudied areas. Zone IV is characterized by the lowest frequency of dangerous meteorological phenomena, with the exception of the very low temperatures on the continent in the central region. The extremes for the characteristics of hazardous meteorological phenomena are presented in Table 60.
Table 60Extreme values of the hazardous meteorological phenomena | ||
Parameter | Value | Location |
Absolute minimum of air temperature | ||
-Arctic basin | -56 degrees Celsius (16 Feb 1972) | NP-19, 88 degrees 2 minutes N, 151 degrees E |
-Subarctic | -68 degrees Celsius | Oimyakon |
Wind speed | 60 m/s | Russkaya Gavan, Maliye Karmakuly, Pevek |
Duration of snowstorms | 6 days | Dixon Island, Tiksi, Cape Schmidt |
Duration of fog with 100 m or less visibility | 36 hours | Ushakov Island |
Rain | 51 millimeters in 12 hours | Cape Zhelaniya |
Glaze | 43 millimeters diameter, 960 g mass | Cape Chelyuskin |
Complex accretion | 62 millimeters diameter, 248 g mass | Ayon Island |
Hail | 54 millimeters diameter | Norilsk |
Thundershowers/ precipitation | 10 cases in June 1956 | Noviy Port |
Hazardous meteorological phenomena are often connected with passage of atmospheric eddies, which cause adverse impacts in other areas including the seas and over the arctic continent. As a result of the influence of atmospheric eddies, a chain of highly dangerous hydrometeorological phenomena can be set up which is connected with the formation of meteorological phenomena in specific regions. Storm winds cause ocean waves and swell which result in increases and decreases in water level, ice drift, compression and extension of the ice pack, and severe ice pile-up along the shoreline. Cold air inflow and an early decrease of air temperature below zero in autumn cause cooling of the surface water layer and early ice formation in the continental basins. Snowfall and snowstorms caused by passing of cyclones form snow drifts and trigger the release of avalanches in hilly and mountainous regions. Thaws in winter followed by refreezing cause the formation of ice glaze and crust in the snowpack, making it more difficult for wildlife to feed and in severe cases causing their death.
In this fashion, dangerous phenomena in the atmosphere cause analogous phenomena in other natural environments, and together they strengthen adverse impact on wildlife and the national economy. In the most severe circumstances, these can result in natural disasters or ecological catastrophes.
Taking into account the considerations mentioned above, we have developed a schematic block diagram of hazardous hydrometeorological phenomena and their impact on human activity and the environment (Figure 56).
(90 to 95%)
(5 to 10%)
Figure 56. Schematic representation of hazardous meteorological phenomena and their consequences.