"Waghorn" wrote in message
...

"Richard Dixon"
"......why split fronts appear to be more common in the British Isles
than in the Pacific Northwest.........."


I was wondering if somebody might have an opinion on a reply to the
question, even whether it's a real phenomenon (in the paper a suggestion is
made that the observation maybe due to selection in research strategies ),

It sounds to me to be similar to the effect of a breaking wave on the sea
shore.

The difference then, between the North Pacific and North Atlantic air flows,
would be the relief of the American and European land masses. The reason
for more split fronts in the British Isles would be the height of the
mountains
here. Perhaps an average height of 3000 feet is that needed to induce split
fronts, and the Rockies are too high.

Alternatively, perhaps the lower relief in Ireland and the higher relief in
Scotland causes a tipping effect which rolls the split northwards. This
idea is easy to confirm if the split does start when the front reaches
Ireland,
and works its way north as the front moves eastward. If the splits are on
fronts
that reach Scotland first, then perhaps it is just mountains rising 3 to 4
thousand
feet that induce them.

How does that fit with the facts?

Cheers, Alastair.