All good things must come to an end (click on for animation)

April 23, 2007

1:30 PM

Antarctica

There is a 'settling' of the dynamics of the top ice and once again the 'hotter' environment surrounding Antarctica is intruding. The 'jet stream' is slower and returning to the simplicity of vortex flow around the cold ice (click on). Noted is the absence of wind over southwest area of WAIS which has increased temperature, same as last week (click on). There is a far stronger 'on shore' wind than last week when the heavier and denser frigid air of the Blue Ice literally 'water falled' over the Peninsula. To clearly illustrate the 'intrusion' of the heat from the surrounding tropospheric conditions I'll start with the warmest of the areas, an island which was subzero celcius last week but is above zero this week. That island is just off the northern reaches of the peninsula.

Base Orcadas, Antarctica

Local Time:1:40 PM GST

Elevation :: 20 ft / 6 m

Temperature :: 35 °F / 2 °C

Conditions :: Light Rain

Humidity :: 96%

Dew Point :: 34 °F / 1 °C

Wind :: 21 mph / 33 km/h / from the NW

Wind Gust :: -

Pressure :: 29.24 in / 990 hPa (Rising)

Visibility :: 2.0 miles / 3.0 kilometers

UV :: 0 out of 16

Clouds :: Mostly Cloudy 492 ft / 150 m Mostly Cloudy 2953 ft / 900 m

(Above Ground Level)

The satellite animation is strange, sorry, DIFFERENT this week. It goes in sequence from 12 AM to 3 AM to 6 AM to 9 AM and then jumps to 1 PM. ????????? And then from 1 PM it goes to 9 PM and then back to 12 AM. ??????????? It would seem during what one would expect to be the warmest hours of recording by satellite, it's mostly missing. Go, figure, huh?


At any rate the peninsula is warming and there is an encroaching heat intrusion at the southeast corner of Eastern Antarctica.

Dome C
Local Time :: 3:37 PM GMT
Elevation :: 10761 ft / 3280 m
Temperature :: -76 °F / -60 °C
Wind :: 12 mph / 18 km/h / from the WSW
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: in / hPa (Falling)

Aviation
Flight Rule :: NA
Wind Speed :: 12 mph / 18 km/h /
Wind Dir :: 240° (WSW)
Ceiling :: -


Vostok, Antarctica
Elevation :: 11220 ft / 3420 m
Temperature :: -60 °F / -51 °C
Conditions :: Low Drifting Snow
Humidity :: 45%
Dew Point :: -67 °F / -55 °C
Wind :: 16 mph / 26 km/h /from the SSW
Wind Gust :: -
Pressure :: in / hPa (Falling)
Visibility :: 12.0 miles / 20.0 kilometers
UV :: 0 out of 16


Aviation
Flight Rule :: VFR ()
Wind Speed :: 16 mph / 26 km/h /
Wind Dir :: 200° (SSW)
Ceiling :: 100000 ft / 100000 m


Indeed. Circumstances are still pleasant but worrisome.