Global Climatology of Extratropical Cyclones From a New Tracking Approach and Associated Wave Heights From Satellite Radar Altimeter

Abstract

AbstractExtratropical cyclones (ECs) produce comparable wave heights and hazardous sea states to those under hurricanes. With strong wind speeds and considerably larger diameters, the impact of ECs on the global wave climate is substantial. Because ECs occur more frequently, move more quickly, and exist in a large variety of sizes and shapes, these storms are not as well documented. Here, we present findings from a global EC tracking algorithm aimed at creating an EC database of wave producing storms. We focus on the major ocean basins of extratropical cyclone activity: The North Atlantic, North Pacific, and Southern Oceans. Our tracking algorithm uses mean sea level pressure fields from the European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) high resolution, advanced data assimilating, ERA5 reanalysis over the years 1979–2020. The 42 year‐long data set of thousands of cyclone tracks allows seasonal patterns and longer‐term trends of EC activity to be analyzed in these ocean regions. In addition, we employ 36 years of satellite radar altimeter‐derived significant wave height (Hs) data from 14 inter‐calibrated satellite missions to study the wave climate induced by the identified ECs in each basin. The resulting wave climatology compares well with previous results in the mid to high latitudes. We then analyze average wave heights under different EC characteristics, including cyclone translational speed and maximum winds, which have strong effects on wave height variability. Finally, a brief analysis of EC and wave climate under positive and negative phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation is presented.