Articles | Volume 7, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-7-1189-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-7-1189-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
07 Jul 2026
Research article |
| 07 Jul 2026
| 07 Jul 2026
Curved atmospheric rivers and their moisture remnants: a new detection tool for Antarctica
Victoire Buffet
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Université Grenoble Alpes/CNRS/IRD/G-INP, IGE, Grenoble, 38000, France
Biogéosciences, UMR6282 CNRS / Université Bourgogne Europe, Dijon, 21000, France
Vincent Favier
Université Grenoble Alpes/CNRS/IRD/G-INP, IGE, Grenoble, 38000, France
Benjamin Pohl
Biogéosciences, UMR6282 CNRS / Université Bourgogne Europe, Dijon, 21000, France
Jonathan D. Wille
Université Grenoble Alpes/CNRS/IRD/G-INP, IGE, Grenoble, 38000, France
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Claudio Stefanini, Giovanni Macelloni, Marion Leduc-Leballeur, Vincent Favier, Benjamin Pohl, and Ghislain Picard
The Cryosphere, 18, 593–608, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-593-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-593-2024, 2024
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Local and large-scale meteorological conditions have been considered in order to explain some peculiar changes of snow grains on the East Antarctic Plateau from 2000 to 2022, by using remote sensing observations and reanalysis. We identified some extreme grain size events on the highest ice divide, resulting from a combination of conditions of low wind speed and low temperature. Moreover, the beginning of seasonal grain growth has been linked to the occurrence of atmospheric rivers.
Sara Arioli, Ghislain Picard, Laurent Arnaud, and Vincent Favier
The Cryosphere, 17, 2323–2342, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2323-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2323-2023, 2023
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Marco Gaetani, Benjamin Pohl, Maria del Carmen Alvarez Castro, Cyrille Flamant, and Paola Formenti
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During the dry austral winter, biomass fires in tropical Africa emit large amounts of smoke in the atmosphere, with large impacts on climate and air quality. The study of the relationship between atmospheric circulation and smoke transport shows that midlatitude atmospheric disturbances may deflect the smoke from tropical Africa towards southern Africa. Understanding the distribution of the smoke in the region is crucial for climate modelling and air quality monitoring.
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Short summary
We improve the detection of long corridors of intense moisture transport, known as atmospheric rivers, that affect Antarctica. Our new method can track these rivers even when they curve, cross the South Pole, or break into smaller parts. We show that they cause even more heavy snowfall and warm weather on the continent than previously thought, clarifying their role in shaping Antarctic climate and ice loss.
We improve the detection of long corridors of intense moisture transport, known as atmospheric...
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