Organization and Structure of Clouds and Precipitation on the Mid-Atlantic Coast of theUnited States. Part III: The Evolution of a Middle-Tropospheric Cold Front

Abstract

The development of a complex middle-tropospheric frontal structure, the various weather associated with itsprogression across the United States, and its role in the production of precipitation in the eastern third of theUnited States are examined. The frontal structure consisted of two features: a middle-tropospheric cold front associated with a strong 500mb short wave that moved eastward from the Pacific Ocean, and a leeside warm front that formed in a northwardsloping zone of warm-air advection associated with a trough in the lee of the Rocky Mountains. The middletropospheric cold front overtook the leeside warm front to produce a warm occlusion-like structure'in the middletroposphere. As this system progressed eastward across the United States precipitation (from light rain to convectiveshowers) occurred along the leading edge of the middle4ropospheric frontal zone, well ahead of a decayingsurface trough. This study highlights the importance of middle-tropospheric frontal structures in the organization and distribution of precipitation. The study also provides some insights and speculations concerning the similaritiesbetween lee troughs and drylines, the generation of squall lines by middle-tropospheric cold fronts, and the needfor better conceptual models for the evolution and structure of middle-tropospheric fronts.