A new study has been released confirming that variations in the flow of high altitude winds that normally blow from west to east around the planet can have a big influence on extended bouts of unseasonal weather in locations like Asia, Europe, and the U.S.
Air flow pattern changes around the northern hemisphere impact weather conditions in a number of places around the world, according to the findings.
"The impacts of large and slow moving atmospheric waves are different in different places. In some places amplified waves increase the chance of unusually hot conditions, and in others the risk of cold, wet or dry conditions," said James Screen, a mathematics research fellow at University of Exeter in Britain, according to USA Today.
High altitude winds do not follow a straight path, instead the flow makes its way to the north and south in a "wave-like path."
The wave patterns are responsible for sucking either cold air from the Arctic, to Europe, Asia, or the US, or warm air from the tropics.
The researchers determined that the wave patterns also influence rainfall by steering rain-laden storms, according to USA Today.
Researchers were able to confirm that larger waves can lead to droughts in central North America, Central Asia, and Europe, while Western Asia can experience prolonged wet spells.
Central Asia and Western North America are more prone to heat waves, while eastern North America is more likely to go through extended outbreaks of cold, according to USA Today.
For the study, researchers used land-based observations to identify episodes of abnormal temperature and rainfall from 1979 until 2012. They examined the wave patterns during these events, according to
"The findings are very important for decision makers in assessing the risk of, and planning for the impacts of, extreme weather events in the future," said Ian Simmonds, professor from University of Melbourne in Australia, according to USA Today.
Research was published in the British journal Nature.
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