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In-Depth Information
Table 5.3 Location and mean temperatures for the coldest month, warmest month, and the mean annual
value for selected stations in the Arctic
Altitude
(m)
Coldest
month (
8
C)
Warmest
month (
8
C)
Mean
annual (
8
C)
Latitude
8
N
Longitude
8
Coastal stations
Svalbard
78
8
04
0
13
8
38
0
E
9
12.1
5.5
5.4
69
8
00
0
33
8
06
0
E
Murmansk
46
10.6
12.6
0.0
72
8
23
0
52
8
44
0
E
Novaya Zemlya
16
15.0
6.7
5.2
76
8
00
0
137
8
54
0
E
Novo Sibirskie
10
29.6
2.8
15.2
70
8
58
0
178
8
32
0
W
Wrangell Island
3
25.6
2.8
11.8
71
8
18
0
156
8
47
0
W
Barrow
9
27.7
5.3
12.2
76
8
14
0
119'20
0
W15
Mould Bay
35.4
5.0
17.4
80
8
00
0
85
8
56
0
W
Eureka
2
37.6
5.7
19.1
82
8
30
0
62
8
20
0
W
Alert
63
33.0
3.9
17.8
Other stations
Station Central
70
8
55
0
40
8
38
0
W
2993
39.9
10.4
26.8
N. Pole Drifting
75-90
8
147-171
8
E
0
36.5
0.3
18.8
Verkhoyansk
67
8
36
0
133
8
24
0
E
127
47.7
15.6
15.3
as a whole over longer time periods. Models used to support such claims may
not always correctly represent the polar atmosphere and the complex feed-
back mechanisms. There are many variations in surface types, each develop-
ing their own micro-climate, and circulation pattern changes do not affect all
surface types uniformly. Figure
5.10b
displays the temperature increases for
Murmansk, Barrow, and Verkhoyansk. It can be seen that the temperature
increase is strong early in the century, then from 1955 to 1975 a cold period is
observed, and thereafter the temperature continued to increase again. In the
last years this temperature increase has stopped, however, it is too early to
judge if it is a real reversal in the trend. In general it can be seen that the
temperature increase for Verkhoyansk is substantial, Barrow displayed a
value closer to the mean value for the Northern Hemisphere, while the shorter
time series for Murmansk is flat. It should be further noted that the tempera-
ture increase displays a strong seasonal variation; it is large in winter and
spring, less so in summer, and in autumn even a small cooling has been
observed (Curtis et al.
1998
).
Low-frequency variability
Looking at the temperature record one observes cyclic or quasi-cyclic beha-
vior. One of the climate forcing cycles is the North Atlantic Oscillation
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