Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.2002, Side 96

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ARCTIC MOUNTAIN METEOROLOGY AT THE SORNFELLI MOUNTAIN
IN YEAR 2000 IN THE FAROE ISLANDS
Introduction
The location of the Faroe Islands in the
Northeast Atlantic Ocean offers a unique
setting for registering the timing and sever-
ity of late Quaternary climatic changes,
caused by fluctuations of the North Atlantic
Drift (Humlum et al., 1996; Humlum and
Christiansen, 1998a). The islands are the
only land area completely surrounded by
the warm North Atlantic Drift. This causes
an oceanic temperate climate at sea level,
significantly warmer than the latitude of
62°N indicates (Cappelen and Laursen,
1998). The area of the islands is too small
to generate any continental feedback ef-
fects.
In comparatively warm periods, when
generally strong, or northward-displaced,
circulation occurs in the atmosphere and
ocean, the Faroe Islands lie continuously in
the northward flow of the North Atlantic
Drift. In colder periods, when the North At-
lantic Drift weakens, or its northerly branch
takes a more southerly position, a tongue of
polar water from the East Iceland branch of
the East Greenland Current approaches the
Faroe Islands from the northwest, and sea
ice approaches the Faroes. As a conse-
quence, the Faroe Islands are well placed to
register meteorological effects of shifts of
the ocean current boundaries in the North
Atlantic Ocean.
Instrumentally recorded surface air tem-
perature observations indicate the North
Atlantic region including Greenland, Ice-
land and the Faroe Islands to have cooled
Figure 1. Hypsographv of lhe
Faroe Islands. The mean
heighl above sea level is 282
m. The liigliest located
meteorological station at
Norðradalsskarð at 282 m asl.
is shown. Also the lower limit
of the periglacial zone
(Humlum and Christiansen,
1998b) is included.