2009 Volume 65 Issue 2 Pages 129-139
This study examines interannual changes in the behavior of the August 100 hPa Tibetan high in East Asia. In addition, this study statistically analyzes the influence of interannual changes of the Tibetan high on the weather in northern Japan. A positive anomaly of geopotential height at the 100 hPa was endured before 1991 over northern Japan, but a negative anomaly has continued since 1992 after discontinuous change. The Tibetan high weakened significantly over northern Japan since 1992. Using pressure patterns to analyze the frequency of the front appearing around Japan shows that the mean frequency has increased about 2.5 times since 1992, which is statistically significant. In addition, the temperature in Hokkaido has shown a negative anomaly since 1992, when discontinuous change also occurred. The strength of the Tibetan high is directly related to the increase in the frequency at which the front appears around Japan and the temperature drop in Hokkaido. This study also analyzes typical years. In both 1982 and 1990, when the Tibetan high was strong, temperatures were high in Hokkaido and a few fronts appeared around Japan. In contrast, in 1993 and 2002, the extent of the Tibetan high was smaller, temperatures were lower in Hokkaido, and the appearance frequency of the front around Japan was higher respectively.