Midlatitude fronts and variability in the Southern Hemisphere tropical width

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between midlatitude synoptic activity and variations in the width of the tropics in the Southern Hemisphere for the period 1979–2016. The edge of the tropical belt is defined here in terms of the latitude of the subtropical ridge (STR) of sea level pressure, and eddy activity in the midlatitudes is characterized by the behavior of atmospheric fronts. It is shown that the location and intensity of the STR are significantly correlated with the number of cold fronts between 208 and 408S and that these relationships exhibit seasonal and zonal asymmetry. The link between the STR and the number of fronts is analyzed in five sectors of the Southern Hemisphere to..