The Siberian High (also Siberian Anticyclone ; Russian : Азиатский антициклон ( Aziatsky antitsiklon ); Chinese : 西伯利亞高壓 ; Pinyin Xībólìyǎ gāoyā ) is a massive collection of cold dry air that accumulates in the northeastern part of Eurasia from September until April. It is usually centered on Lake Baikal . It reaches its greatest size and strength in the winter when the air temperature near the center of the high-pressure area is often lower than −40 °C (−40 °F ). The atmospheric pressure is often above 1,040 millibars (31 inHg ). The Siberian High is the strongest semi-permanent high in the northern hemisphere and is responsible for both the lowest temperature in the Northern Hemisphere outside Greenland , of −67.8 °C (−90.0 °F) on 15 January 1885 at Verkhoyansk , and the highest pressure, 1083.8 mbar (108.38 kPa , 32.01 inHg ) at Agata , Krasnoyarsk Krai , on 31 December 1968, ever recorded. The Siberian High is responsible both for severe winter cold and attendant dry conditions with little snow and few or no glaciers across Asian part of Russia , Mongolia , and China . During the summer , the Siberian High is largely replaced by the Asiatic low .
31-563: The Siberian High affects the weather patterns in most parts of the Northern Hemisphere : its influence extends as far west as Italy , bringing freezing conditions also in the warm South, and as far southeast as Malaysia , where it is a critical component of the northeast monsoon . Occasionally a strong Siberian High can bring unusually cold weather into the tropics as far southeast as the Philippines . It may block or reduce
62-632: A counterclockwise pattern. Hurricanes and tropical storms (massive low-pressure systems) spin counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere. The shadow of a sundial moves clockwise on latitudes north of the subsolar point and anticlockwise to the south. During the day at these latitudes, the Sun tends to rise to its maximum at a southerly position. Between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator,
93-558: A small part of South America . During the 2.5 million years of the Pleistocene , numerous cold phases called glacials ( Quaternary ice age ), or significant advances of continental ice sheets, in Europe and North America , occurred at intervals of approximately 40,000 to 100,000 years. The long glacial periods were separated by more temperate and shorter interglacials which lasted about 10,000–15,000 years. The last cold episode of
124-485: Is a navigational term referring to the direction northwards along the grid lines of a map projection . The visible rotation of the night sky around the visible celestial pole provides a vivid metaphor of that direction corresponding to "up". Thus the choice of the north as corresponding to "up" in the northern hemisphere, or of south in that role in the southern, is, before worldwide communication, anything but an arbitrary one - at least for night-time astronomers. (Note:
155-589: Is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator . For other planets in the Solar System , north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar System as Earth's North Pole . Due to Earth's axial tilt of 23.439281°, there is a seasonal variation in the lengths of the day and night. There is also a seasonal variation in temperatures, which lags
186-550: Is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west . North is a noun , adjective , or adverb indicating direction or geography . The word north is related to the Old High German nord , both descending from the Proto-Indo-European unit * ner- , meaning "left; below" as north is to left when facing the rising sun. Similarly, the other cardinal directions are also related to
217-566: The Arctic Circle the Sun never shines from the north. North is sometimes abbreviated as N . By convention , the top or upward-facing side of a map is north. To go north using a compass for navigation , set a bearing or azimuth of 0° or 360°. Traveling directly north traces a meridian line upwards. North is specifically the direction that, in Western culture , is considered
248-590: The Coromandel Coast and Sri Lanka . Other studies have suggested that the strength of the Siberian High shows an inverse correlation with the high-pressure systems over North Africa. Another correlation has been noted, a connection of a weaker Siberian High and Arctic oscillation when the Antarctic oscillation (AAO) is stronger. Because increased snow and ice cover enhances the Siberian High,
279-465: The Northern temperate zone . The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally mild, rather than extreme hot or cold. However, a temperate climate can have very unpredictable weather. Tropical regions (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator, 0° latitude) are generally hot all year round and tend to experience a rainy season during the summer months, and a dry season during
310-483: The calendar year and the astronomical year . Within the Northern Hemisphere, oceanic currents can change the weather patterns that affect many factors within the north coast. Such events include El Niño–Southern Oscillation . Trade winds blow from east to west just above the equator. The winds pull surface water with them, creating currents, which flow westward due to the Coriolis effect . The currents then bend to
341-407: The fundamental direction: Magnetic north is of interest because it is the direction indicated as north on a properly functioning (but uncorrected) magnetic compass . The difference between it and true north is called the magnetic declination (or simply the declination where the context is clear). For many purposes and physical circumstances, the error in direction that results from ignoring
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#1732766143075372-583: The last glacial period ended about 10,000 years ago. Earth is currently in an interglacial period of the Quaternary , called the Holocene . The glaciations that occurred during the glacial period covered many areas of the Northern Hemisphere. The Arctic is a region around the North Pole (90° latitude ). Its climate is characterized by cold winters and cool summers. Precipitation mostly comes in
403-614: The Northern Hemisphere compared to the Southern Hemisphere, making the Northern Hemisphere more suitable for deep-space observation, as it is not "blinded" by the Milky Way. As of 2015, the Northern Hemisphere is home to approximately 6.4 billion people, which is around 87.0% of the Earth's total human population of 7.3 billion people. North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions . It
434-610: The Siberian High was both more intense and located further west during the early Middle Pleistocene as a result of the extensive glaciation of mountain ranges across Central Asia. The decrease in magnitude of the Siberian High during the Holocene enabled eastward encroachment of westerlies enriched with water vapour , precipitating an increase in low altitude afforestation of Central Asia. 66°53′N 93°28′E / 66.883°N 93.467°E / 66.883; 93.467 Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere
465-606: The Sun can be seen to the north, directly overhead, or to the south at noon, depending on the time of year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the midday Sun is predominantly in the north. When viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, the Moon appears inverted compared to a view from the Southern Hemisphere. The North Pole faces away from the Galactic Center of the Milky Way . This results in the Milky Way being sparser and dimmer in
496-488: The distinction is tolerable; in others a mental or instrument compensation, based on assumed knowledge of the applicable declination, can solve all the problems. But simple generalizations on the subject should be treated as unsound, and as likely to reflect popular misconceptions about terrestrial magnetism . Maps intended for usage in orienteering by compass will clearly indicate the local declination for easy correction to true north. Maps may also indicate grid north , which
527-514: The end of April. Its genesis at the end of the Arctic summer is caused by the convergence of summer air flows being cooled over interior northeast Asia as days shorten. In the process of the Siberian High's formation, the upper-level jet is transferred across northern Eurasia by adiabatic cooling and descending advection , which in extreme cases creates " cold domes " that outbreak over warmer parts of East Asia . In spite of its immense influence on
558-590: The form of snow. Areas inside the Arctic Circle (66°34′ latitude) experience some days in summer when the Sun never sets, and some days during the winter when it never rises. The duration of these phases varies from one day for locations right on the Arctic Circle to several months near the Pole, which is the middle of the Northern Hemisphere. Between the Arctic Circle and the Tropic of Cancer (23°26′ latitude) lies
589-523: The north of the Muslim Lezgian homeland there are areas formerly inhabited by non-Muslim Caucasian and Turkic peoples. In many languages of Mesoamerica , north also means "up". In Romanian the old word for north is mĭazănoapte , from Latin mediam noctem meaning midnight and in Hungarian is észak , which is derived from éjszaka ("night"), since between the Tropic of Cancer and
620-486: The ocean. Siberian air is generally colder than Arctic air, because unlike Arctic air which forms over the sea ice around the North Pole , Siberian air forms over the cold tundra of Siberia, which does not radiate heat the same way the ice of the Arctic does. In general, the Siberian High-pressure system begins to build up at the end of August, reaches its peak in the winter, and remains strong until
651-538: The right, heading north. At about 30 degrees north latitude, a different set of winds, the westerlies , push the currents back to the east, producing a closed clockwise loop. Its surface is 60.7% water, compared with 80.9% water in the case of the Southern Hemisphere , and it contains 67.3% of Earth's land. The continents of North America and mainland Eurasia are located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere, together with about two-thirds of Africa and
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#1732766143075682-512: The size of low-pressure cells and generate dry weather across much of the Asian landscape with the exception of regions such as Hokuriku and the Caspian Sea coast of Iran that receive orographic rainfall from the winds it generates. As a result of the Siberian High, coastal winters in the main city of Pacific Russia Vladivostok are very cold in relation to its latitude and proximity to
713-430: The southern hemisphere lacks a prominent visible analog to the northern Pole Star .) On the contrary, Chinese and Islamic cultures considered south as the proper "top" end for maps . In the cultures of Polynesia , where navigation played an important role, winds - prevailing local or ancestral - can define cardinal points . In Western culture : North is quite often associated with colder climates because most of
744-502: The strongest relationship over the West Siberian Plain and significant relationships as far west as Hungary and as far southeast as Guangdong . Precipitation has also been found to be similarly inversely related to the mean central pressure of the Siberian High over almost all of Eastern Europe during the boreal winter, and similar relationships are found in southern China, whilst the opposite correlation exists over
775-529: The sun rises" and "where it sets". Except on the Equator, however, these definitions, taken together, would imply that Reasonably accurate folk astronomy, such as is usually attributed to Stone Age peoples or later Celts , would arrive at east and west by noting the directions of rising and setting (preferably more than once each) and choosing as prime direction one of the two mutually opposite directions that lie halfway between those two. The true folk-astronomical definitions of east and west are "the directions,
806-703: The sun's position. The Latin word borealis comes from the Greek boreas "north wind, north", which, according to Ovid , was personified as the wind-god Boreas , the father of Calais and Zetes . Septentrionalis is from septentriones , "the seven plow oxen", a name of Ursa Major . The Greek ἀρκτικός ( arktikós ) is named for the same constellation, and is the source of the English word Arctic . Other languages have other derivations. For example, in Lezgian , kefer can mean both "disbelief" and "north", since to
837-612: The variation in day and night. Conventionally, winter in the Northern Hemisphere is taken as the period from the December solstice (typically December 21 UTC ) to the March equinox (typically March 20 UTC), while summer is taken as the period from the June solstice through to the September equinox (typically on 23 September UTC). The dates vary each year due to the difference between
868-444: The weather experienced by a large proportion of the world's population, scientific studies of the Siberian High have been late in coming, though variability of its behavior was observed as early as the 1960s. However, recent studies of observed global warming over Asia have shown that weakening of the Siberian High is a prime driver of warmer winters in almost all of inland extra-tropical Asia and even over most parts of Europe , with
899-448: The weather patterns that affect many factors within the north coast. For the same reason, flows of air down toward the northern surface of the Earth tend to spread across the surface in a clockwise pattern. Thus, clockwise air circulation is characteristic of high pressure weather cells in the Northern Hemisphere. Conversely, air rising from the northern surface of the Earth (creating a region of low pressure) tends to draw air toward it in
930-489: The winter months. In the Northern Hemisphere, objects moving across or above the surface of the Earth tend to turn to the right because of the Coriolis effect . As a result, large-scale horizontal flows of air or water tend to form clockwise-turning gyres . These are best seen in ocean circulation patterns in the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans. Within the Northern Hemisphere, oceanic currents can change
961-669: The world's populated land at high latitudes is located in the Northern Hemisphere . The Arctic Circle passes through the Arctic Ocean , Norway , Sweden , Finland , Russia , the United States ( Alaska ), Canada ( Yukon , Northwest Territories and Nunavut ), Denmark ( Greenland ) and Iceland . While the choice of north over south as prime direction reflects quite arbitrary historical factors, east and west are not nearly as natural alternatives as first glance might suggest. Their folk definitions are, respectively, "where