European Atmospheric Circulation Classifications

Abstract

The article describes the objective classification, involving the automated systems application to section the atmospheric processes by types. The objective of typing is to split a collection of objects of a certain sample according to the maximum-distance-separable groups. The basis for objective classification includes several methods: correlation, cluster analysis, nonlinear methods, neural network method, etc. The second half of the XX century and the beginning of XXI century are characterized by high rates of changes in climatic and circulation conditions. An occurrence of rare weather extremes is a manifestation of the transition state of the atmosphere and its instability. Often regional differences have more significant variations than global ones. Therefore, progress in the understanding of current trends of climate change is impossible without taking into account the spatio-temporal dynamics of atmospheric processes. The author considers the main principles of Grosswetterlagen (GWL) classification and investigates regional characteristics of synoptic processes in the territory of Europe based on the characteristics of the surface pressure field and displacement trajectories of the primary pressure systems. The purpose of this paper is to explore one of the most popular classifications for the European region and to establish the possibility of its further application to the territory of Ukraine. Research methods: a statistical description of the synoptic types for Europe for the period from September 1957 up to August 2002. Results of the study confirm the fact that the GWL classification can be successfully used to synoptic processes and works better in the central, western and southern parts of Europe.