Articles | Volume 4, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-4-773-2023
https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-4-773-2023
Research article
 | 
06 Sep 2023
Research article |  | 06 Sep 2023

Classification of large-scale environments that drive the formation of mesoscale convective systems over southern West Africa

Francis Nkrumah, Cornelia Klein, Kwesi Akumenyi Quagraine, Rebecca Berkoh-Oforiwaa, Nana Ama Browne Klutse, Patrick Essien, Gandomè Mayeul Leger Davy Quenum, and Hubert Azoda Koffi

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Cited articles

Alfaro, D. A.: Low-Tropospheric Shear in the Structure of Squall Lines: Impacts on Latent Heating under Layer-Lifting Ascent, J. Atmos. Sci., 74, 229–248, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-16-0168.1, 2017. 
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Augustin, D., Pascal, I. M., Jores, T. K., Elisabeth, F. D., Cesar, M. B., Michael, T. F., Roméo-Ledoux, D. T., Marceline, M., Gladys, K. N. F., and Firmin, B. A.: Impact Assessment of the West African Monsoon on Convective Precipitations over the Far North Region of Cameroon, Adv. Space Res., 72, 666–676, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2022.04.044, 2023. 
Baidu, M., Schwendike, J., Marsham, J. H., and Bain, C.: Effects of Vertical Wind Shear on Intensities of Mesoscale Convective Systems over West and Central Africa, Atmos. Sci. Lett., 23, e1094, https://doi.org/10.1002/asl.1094, 2022. 
Bayo Omotosho, J.: The separate contributions of line squalls, thunderstorms and the monsoon to the total rainfall in Nigeria, J. Climatol., 5, 543–552, https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.3370050507, 1985. 
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Short summary
It is not yet clear which variations in broader atmospheric conditions of the West African monsoon may lead to mesoscale convective system (MCS) occurrences in southern West Africa (SWA). In this study, we identified nine different weather patterns and categorized them as dry-, transition-, or monsoon-season types using a method called self-organizing maps (SOMs). It was revealed that a warmer Sahel region can create favourable conditions for MCS formation in SWA.