Jennifer A Francis
Biographic Data
| ID | 6818040 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Jennifer A Francis |
| GIVEN NAMES | Jennifer A |
| FAMILY NAME | Francis |
| SIGNATURE | FRANCIS J A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7358-9296 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 5 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2022 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
A recent weakening of winter temperature association between Arctic and Asia
Arctic warming and its association with the mid-latitudes has been a hot topic over the past two decades. Although many studies have explored these issues, it is not clear how their linkage has changed over time. The results show that winter low tropospheric temperatures in Asia experienced two phases over the past two decades. Phase I (2007/2008–2012/2013) was characterized by a warm Arctic and cold Eurasia, and phase II by a warm Arctic and war…
How do intermittency and simultaneous processes obfuscate the Arctic influence on midlatitude winter extreme weather events
Pronounced changes in the Arctic environment add a new potential driver of anomalous weather patterns in midlatitudes that affect billions of people. Recent studies of these Arctic/midlatitude weather linkages, however, state inconsistent conclusions. A source of uncertainty arises from the chaotic nature of the atmosphere. Thermodynamic forcing by a rapidly warming Arctic contributes to weather events through changing surface heat fluxes and lar…
Wind amplifies the polar sea ice retreat
The rapid polar sea ice retreat and its drivers are challenging and still unresolved questions in climate change research. In particular, the relationship between near-surface wind speed and sea ice extent remains unclear for two main reasons: (1) observed wind speeds over Polar Regions are very sparse, and (2) simulated winds by climate models are dependent on subjective parameterizations of boundary layer stratification, ultimately leading to l…
Why has no new record-minimum Arctic sea-ice extent occurred since September 2012
One of the clearest indicators of human-caused climate change is the rapid decline in Arctic sea ice. The summer minimum coverage is now approximately half of its extent only 40 yr ago. Four records in the minimum extent were broken since 2000, the most recent occurring in September 2012. No new records have been set since then, however, owing to an abrupt atmospheric shift during each August/early-September that brought low sea-level pressure, c…
Amplified Arctic warming and mid‐latitude weather
The Arctic is warming and melting at alarming rates. Within the lifetime of a Millennial, the volume of ice floating on the Arctic Ocean has declined by at least half. The pace of Arctic warming is two‐to‐three times that of the globe; this disparity reached a new record high during 2016. While the Arctic spans only a small fraction of the Earth, it plays a disproportionate and multifaceted role in the climate system. In this article, we offer ne…
Evidence for a wavier jet stream in response to rapid Arctic warming
New metrics and evidence are presented that support a linkage between rapid Arctic warming, relative to Northern hemisphere mid-latitudes, and more frequent high-amplitude (wavy) jet-stream configurations that favor persistent weather patterns. We find robust relationships among seasonal and regional patterns of weaker poleward thickness gradients, weaker zonal upper-level winds, and a more meridional flow direction. These results suggest that as…
The Arctic matters
Screen et al (2015 Environ. Res. Lett. 10 084006 ) find that model simulations forced by past and future Arctic sea-ice conditions provide robust evidence that a variety of extreme weather events both within and beyond the Arctic will be affected by changing sea-ice conditions
Recent Arctic amplification and extreme mid-latitude weather
The where and when of wetter and drier
Summer precipitation in northern Europe has been above average for each of the past six years (2007–2012), a pattern that is unprecedented in over a century. During these same years, the summer Arctic sea-ice cover has averaged about 40% below its typical extent prior to the 1950s and set two new record minima. Could there be a connection? This is the question that motivated the new study by Dr James Screen, a Research Fellow at the University of…
Cold winter extremes in northern continents linked to Arctic sea ice loss
The satellite record since 1979 shows downward trends in Arctic sea ice extent in all months, which are smallest in winter and largest in September. Previous studies have linked changes in winter atmospheric circulation, anomalously cold extremes and large snowfalls in mid-latitudes to rapid decline of Arctic sea ice in the preceding autumn. Using observational analyses, we show that the winter atmospheric circulation change and cold extremes are…
Evidence linking Arctic amplification to extreme weather in mid‐latitudes
Arctic amplification (AA) – the observed enhanced warming in high northern latitudes relative to the northern hemisphere – is evident in lower‐tropospheric temperatures and in 1000‐to‐500 hPa thicknesses. Daily fields of 500 hPa heights from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction Reanalysis are analyzed over N. America and the N. Atlantic to assess changes in north‐south (Rossby) wave characteristics associated with AA and the relaxati…
Projected regime shift in Arctic cloud and water vapor feedbacks
The Arctic climate is changing faster than any other large-scale region on Earth. A variety of positive feedback mechanisms are responsible for the amplification, most of which are linked with changes in snow and ice cover, surface temperature (Ts), atmospheric water vapor (WV), and cloud properties. As greenhouse gases continue to accumulate in the atmosphere, air temperature and water vapor content also increase, leading to a warmer surface and…
Aerosol climate effects and air quality impacts from 1980 to 2030
We investigate aerosol effects on climate for 1980, 1995 (meant to reflect present day) and 2030 using the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies climate model coupled to an on-line aerosol source and transport model with interactive oxidant and aerosol chemistry. Aerosols simulated include sulfates, organic matter (OM), black carbon (BC), sea-salt and dust and, additionally, the amount of tropospheric ozone is calculated, allowing us to estima…
Changes in the fabric of the Arctic’s greenhouse blanket
The Arctic is rapidly losing its permanent ice. While increases in greenhouse gases are believed to be the underlying cause of the melting, interactions among the Arctic's changing thermodynamic and dynamic processes driving ice loss are poorly understood. The emission of infrared radiation from the atmosphere to the surface has been recently implicated as an important factor governing the extent of summer perennial sea ice. In this study we use …
Amplified Arctic warming and mid‐latitude weather
The Arctic is warming and melting at alarming rates. Within the lifetime of a Millennial, the volume of ice floating on the Arctic Ocean has declined by at least half. The pace of Arctic warming is two‐to‐three times that of the globe; this disparity reached a new record high during 2016. While the Arctic spans only a small fraction of the Earth, it plays a disproportionate and multifaceted role in the climate system. In this article, we offer ne…
Changes in the fabric of the Arctic’s greenhouse blanket
The Arctic is rapidly losing its permanent ice. While increases in greenhouse gases are believed to be the underlying cause of the melting, interactions among the Arctic's changing thermodynamic and dynamic processes driving ice loss are poorly understood. The emission of infrared radiation from the atmosphere to the surface has been recently implicated as an important factor governing the extent of summer perennial sea ice. In this study we use …
Aerosol climate effects and air quality impacts from 1980 to 2030
We investigate aerosol effects on climate for 1980, 1995 (meant to reflect present day) and 2030 using the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies climate model coupled to an on-line aerosol source and transport model with interactive oxidant and aerosol chemistry. Aerosols simulated include sulfates, organic matter (OM), black carbon (BC), sea-salt and dust and, additionally, the amount of tropospheric ozone is calculated, allowing us to estima…
Projected regime shift in Arctic cloud and water vapor feedbacks
The Arctic climate is changing faster than any other large-scale region on Earth. A variety of positive feedback mechanisms are responsible for the amplification, most of which are linked with changes in snow and ice cover, surface temperature (Ts), atmospheric water vapor (WV), and cloud properties. As greenhouse gases continue to accumulate in the atmosphere, air temperature and water vapor content also increase, leading to a warmer surface and…
Evidence linking Arctic amplification to extreme weather in mid‐latitudes
Arctic amplification (AA) – the observed enhanced warming in high northern latitudes relative to the northern hemisphere – is evident in lower‐tropospheric temperatures and in 1000‐to‐500 hPa thicknesses. Daily fields of 500 hPa heights from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction Reanalysis are analyzed over N. America and the N. Atlantic to assess changes in north‐south (Rossby) wave characteristics associated with AA and the relaxati…
The where and when of wetter and drier
Summer precipitation in northern Europe has been above average for each of the past six years (2007–2012), a pattern that is unprecedented in over a century. During these same years, the summer Arctic sea-ice cover has averaged about 40% below its typical extent prior to the 1950s and set two new record minima. Could there be a connection? This is the question that motivated the new study by Dr James Screen, a Research Fellow at the University of…
Cold winter extremes in northern continents linked to Arctic sea ice loss
The satellite record since 1979 shows downward trends in Arctic sea ice extent in all months, which are smallest in winter and largest in September. Previous studies have linked changes in winter atmospheric circulation, anomalously cold extremes and large snowfalls in mid-latitudes to rapid decline of Arctic sea ice in the preceding autumn. Using observational analyses, we show that the winter atmospheric circulation change and cold extremes are…
Recent Arctic amplification and extreme mid-latitude weather
Evidence for a wavier jet stream in response to rapid Arctic warming
New metrics and evidence are presented that support a linkage between rapid Arctic warming, relative to Northern hemisphere mid-latitudes, and more frequent high-amplitude (wavy) jet-stream configurations that favor persistent weather patterns. We find robust relationships among seasonal and regional patterns of weaker poleward thickness gradients, weaker zonal upper-level winds, and a more meridional flow direction. These results suggest that as…
The Arctic matters
Screen et al (2015 Environ. Res. Lett. 10 084006 ) find that model simulations forced by past and future Arctic sea-ice conditions provide robust evidence that a variety of extreme weather events both within and beyond the Arctic will be affected by changing sea-ice conditions
Amplified Arctic warming and mid‐latitude weather
The Arctic is warming and melting at alarming rates. Within the lifetime of a Millennial, the volume of ice floating on the Arctic Ocean has declined by at least half. The pace of Arctic warming is two‐to‐three times that of the globe; this disparity reached a new record high during 2016. While the Arctic spans only a small fraction of the Earth, it plays a disproportionate and multifaceted role in the climate system. In this article, we offer ne…
Wind amplifies the polar sea ice retreat
The rapid polar sea ice retreat and its drivers are challenging and still unresolved questions in climate change research. In particular, the relationship between near-surface wind speed and sea ice extent remains unclear for two main reasons: (1) observed wind speeds over Polar Regions are very sparse, and (2) simulated winds by climate models are dependent on subjective parameterizations of boundary layer stratification, ultimately leading to l…
Why has no new record-minimum Arctic sea-ice extent occurred since September 2012
One of the clearest indicators of human-caused climate change is the rapid decline in Arctic sea ice. The summer minimum coverage is now approximately half of its extent only 40 yr ago. Four records in the minimum extent were broken since 2000, the most recent occurring in September 2012. No new records have been set since then, however, owing to an abrupt atmospheric shift during each August/early-September that brought low sea-level pressure, c…
How do intermittency and simultaneous processes obfuscate the Arctic influence on midlatitude winter extreme weather events
Pronounced changes in the Arctic environment add a new potential driver of anomalous weather patterns in midlatitudes that affect billions of people. Recent studies of these Arctic/midlatitude weather linkages, however, state inconsistent conclusions. A source of uncertainty arises from the chaotic nature of the atmosphere. Thermodynamic forcing by a rapidly warming Arctic contributes to weather events through changing surface heat fluxes and lar…
A recent weakening of winter temperature association between Arctic and Asia
Arctic warming and its association with the mid-latitudes has been a hot topic over the past two decades. Although many studies have explored these issues, it is not clear how their linkage has changed over time. The results show that winter low tropospheric temperatures in Asia experienced two phases over the past two decades. Phase I (2007/2008–2012/2013) was characterized by a warm Arctic and cold Eurasia, and phase II by a warm Arctic and war…
Climatology (14 works) · Environmental Science (14 works) · Arctic (13 works) · Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics (13 works) · Climate variability and models (11 works) · Geology (11 works) · Oceanography (11 works) · Climate change (10 works) · Arctic ice pack (9 works) · Sea ice (9 works)