Cyclones vs Anticyclones

A cyclone is a general term for a type of weather system in which winds move inward toward a low-pressure area. In the Northern Hemisphere, large weather systems move in a counterclockwise direction. In the Southern Hemisphere, they move in a clockwise direction.

As seen from above, an anticyclone is a large-scale circulation of winds around a central area of high atmospheric pressure. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winds move clockwise, while in the Southern Hemisphere, they move in the opposite direction (opposite to a cyclone). Surface-based anticyclones can clear the sky and make the air cooler and drier. Fog can also form overnight in places where the air pressure is higher.

What is an anticyclone?

An anticyclone is a high-pressure area (above 1013 Pa) where the air pressure is higher than the air pressure around it and rises from the outside to the centre. It’s usually connected to clear skies, sunshine, and stable weather. The air in the column of the anticyclone is more stable than the air around it. In turn, the air that falls down creates a process called sinking, which stops precipitation from happening. Of course, you have to think about how the air falls differently in each hemisphere.

These anticyclonic airflows are more likely to happen in the summer, which makes the dry season even worse. They are harder to predict than cyclones because their shape and behaviour are not always the same. Anticyclones can, in a broad sense, be put into four groups or categories.

How are anticyclones formed?

Anticyclones form higher up in warm core cyclones, like tropical cyclones, when clouds release latent heat, which raises the temperature of the air. This makes the atmospheric layer thicker, which raises the pressure above, which empties their outflow.

The size, strength, moist convection, and Coriolis force are some of the things that can cause an anticyclone to form. When there is a weak pressure gradient, the wind system is very light and not fully formed. On average, the winds move in all directions from a high-pressure centre to a low-pressure edge. This is called a divergent system. Compared to the front, the winds in the back are very slow. In the middle, however, there is a light breeze, which is caused by the descent of either cold polar air or warm tropical air.

Most of the time, it doesn’t rain during an anticyclone, and the sky is clear. This is because air that is falling in the centre of an anticyclone warms up at a dry adiabatic rate. This makes the temperature go up, which slows down the normal rate at which the temperature drops. This makes the air more stable, which makes it much drier. This is why dry weather comes with anticyclones.

Characteristics of Anticyclones

• They are usually shaped like a circle. The pressure difference between an anticyclone’s centre and its edges is between 10 and 20 mb.

• They are much bigger and cover a much larger area than tropical cyclones.

• After cyclones, there are anticyclones. They move in a very slow way. The average speed of an anticyclone is between 30 and 50 km/h.

• At the centre, winds come down from above, making the sky clearer and causing it to rain less. This is called atmospheric stability.

• In anticyclones, the temperature depends on the weather, the type of air mass, and the amount of moisture in the air.

• There are no fronts in anticyclones.

Anticyclone types

There are different kinds of anticyclones based on what they are made of. Here are some of them:

• Subtropical Atlas

• Continental Polar Atlases

• Atlas between a series of cyclones

• Polar air’s invasion led to the making of Atlas.

The first is the subtropical atlas, which shows a large, thin anticyclone in the subtropical zone that is usually still or moves very slowly. In this group, it’s important to mention the Azores anticyclone, which turned out to be a very important dynamic anticyclone that controls the weather in the area and the storms that happen during cold times.

The second is the Continental Polar Atlas anticyclone, which forms in the winter on the continent closest to the north and moves around until it reaches warm water and is absorbed by the subtropical anticyclone.

The third group of anticyclones is like an atlas between a series of cyclones. They are small and, as their name suggests, appear between cyclones. The last anticyclone group is an atlas that is caused by the intrusion of polar air. As its name suggests, cold air absorbs heat from warmer waters and changes into a subtropical anticyclone a few days later.

Difference between Anticyclones and cyclones

1. One of the biggest differences between a cyclone and an anticyclone is that a cyclone is a low-pressure system and an anticyclone is a high-pressure system.

2. In a cyclone, there is a storm, and in an anticyclone, there is a light, cool wind.

3. In a cyclone, the winds come together at the eye, where there is low pressure, and move in a spiral pattern. In an anticyclone, on the other hand, the winds move away from the centre, where there is high pressure, and toward the edges, where there is low pressure.

4. Winds blow clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.

Conclusion

Both cyclones and anticyclones are often linked to different weather patterns. Cyclones, which are often called “lows,” are usually signs of rain, clouds, and other kinds of bad weather. Anticyclones, which are also called “highs,” are signs of good weather.