Development of North Atlantic Tropical Disturbances near Upper-Level Potential Vorticity Streamers

Abstract

Abstract Tropical cyclone (TC) development near upper-level potential vorticity (PV) streamers in the North Atlantic is studied from synoptic climatology, composite, and case study perspectives. Midlatitude anticyclonic wave breaking is instrumental in driving PV streamers into subtropical and tropical latitudes, in particular near the time-mean midocean trough identified previously as the tropical upper-tropospheric trough. Twelve TCs developed within one Rossby radius of PV streamers in the North Atlantic from June through November 2004–08. This study uses composite analysis in the disturbance-relative framework to compare the structural and thermodynamic evolution for developing and nondeveloping cases. The results show that incipient tropical disturbances are embedded in an environment characterized by 850–200-hPa westerly vertical wind shear and mid- and upper-level quasigeostrophic ascent associated with the PV streamer, with minor differences between developing and nondeveloping cases. The key difference in synoptic-scale flow between developing and nondeveloping cases is the strength of the anticyclone north of the incipient tropical disturbance. The developing cases are marked by a stronger near-surface pressure gradient and attendant easterly flow north of the vortex, which drives enhanced surface latent heat fluxes and westward (upshear) water vapor transport. This evolution in water vapor facilitates an upshear propagation of convection, and the diabatically influenced divergent outflow erodes the PV streamer aloft by negative advection of PV by the divergent wind. This result suggests that the PV streamer plays a secondary role in TC development, with the structure and intensity of the synoptic-scale anticyclone north of the incipient vortex playing a primary role.