How does the Arctic affect our weather? Fresh perspectives on a long-standing question MASTS Webinar with Marilena Oltmanns (National Oceanography Centre)

Recent decades have been characterised by an increased occurrence of extreme weather events in the North Atlantic region, entailing severe economic costs. While earlier studies indicated links between mid-latitude weather extremes and the amplified Arctic warming, the dynamical connections remain elusive.

In this talk, Marilena Oltmanns from the National Oceanography Centre will demonstrate a new mechanism linking Arctic ice losses in the form of freshwater with the development of storms over the North Atlantic in winter and heat waves and droughts over Europe in summer. Considering feedbacks of the identified mechanism on the ocean and atmospheric circulation in the Arctic, Marilena will also discuss the potential for rapid changes in the North Atlantic climate.