Universität zu Köln

Lauer, Melanie ORCID: 0000-0001-8168-1933, Rinke, Annette ORCID: 0000-0002-6685-9219 and Crewell, Susanne ORCID: 0000-0003-1251-5805 (2025). What Are the Most Important Contributors to Arctic Precipitation—When, Where, and How? Atmospheric Science Letters, 26 (9). pp. 1-8. Wiley. ISSN 1530-261X

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Abstract

[Artikel-Nr.: e1317] The Arctic climate system is experiencing large changes associated with global warming. Precipitation is a crucial factor linking the atmosphere with other climate compartments, for example, ocean and cryosphere. Using atmospheric reanalysis (ERA5) we assess the role of atmospheric weather systems, that is, atmospheric rivers, cyclones, and fronts. When: Averaged over the whole Arctic (> 70° N), a strong seasonal cycle exists with twice as much precipitation in summer than in winter when frozen precipitation is mainly brought by cyclones. In summer, the highest total precipitation amounts are rather equally contributed by all weather systems. Where: In winter, the Arctic North Atlantic region experiences by far the highest precipitation amounts, whereas in summer precipitation is more evenly distributed over the whole Arctic. How: Overall, cyclones are the most important contributor to precipitation. The highest precipitation intensity occurs when atmospheric rivers, cyclones, and fronts coincide, whereas the lowest precipitation rates occur when precipitation cannot be attributed to any of these weather systems. This residual makes up almost half of the annual snowfall, most of it in the central Arctic, and 25% of rainfall. Marine Cold Air Outbreaks can explain part of the residual. The amount and drivers for light “trace” precipitation requires further investigation. [Funding: This work was supported by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) for the ArctiC amplification: Climate Relevant Atmospheric and SurfaCe Processes, and Feedback Mechanisms (AC) 3 (project no. 268020496—TRR 172) within the Transregional Collaborative Research Center].

Item Type:	Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Lauer, Melanie UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8168-1933 UNSPECIFIED Rinke, Annette UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6685-9219 UNSPECIFIED Crewell, Susanne UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1251-5805 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-801392
Identification Number:	10.1002/asl.1317
Journal or Publication Title:	Atmospheric Science Letters
Volume:	26
Number:	9
Page Range:	pp. 1-8
Number of Pages:	8
Date:	14 September 2025
Publisher:	Wiley
ISSN:	1530-261X
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Divisions:	Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences > Department of Geosciences > Institute for Geophysics and Meteorology
Subjects:	Natural sciences and mathematics Earth sciences Geography and travel
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language atmospheric and climate dynamics ; atmospheric physics ; climate ; observational data analysis ; tools and methods ; weather/climate extremes English
['eprint_fieldname_oa_funders' not defined]:	Publikationsfonds UzK
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/80139