13th Plinius Conference on Mediterranean Storms

Its unique morphological characteristics, a nearly enclosed basin surrounded by steep orography, make the Mediterranean region an area prone to high-impact weather. The storm systems encompass a wide range of physical mechanisms and spatio-temporal scales: baroclinic and orographic cyclones, warm core cyclones and Medicanes, heavy orographic precipitation, severe convection including squall lines, mesoscale convective systems, and wind storms. A thorough knowledge of the physical processes responsible for these atmospheric phenomena and, in particular, of the way these processes interact and combine with each other, is required in order to improve storm forecasting, providing thus improved hazard prediction and timely alerts to the public.
This session welcomes contributions related to both diagnosis and forecasting of storms, and in particular: modeling and theoretical studies of severe weather phenomena and related processes affecting the Mediterranean area; sensitivity experiments; operational forecasting issues, including ensemble forecasting, data assimilation, data targeting, predictability and verification with emphasis on applications at mesoscale in the Mediterranean region; future evolution of Mediterranean storms in the context of global change.