Editing Cyclone (section)

==== Polar low ====
{{Main|Polar low}}
[[File:Sea of Japan polar low 2009-12-20 0213Z.jpg|thumb|A polar low over the [[Sea of Japan]] in December 2009]]
A '''polar low''' is a small-scale, short-lived atmospheric [[low-pressure system]] (depression) that is found over the ocean areas poleward of the main [[polar front]] in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Polar lows were first identified on the meteorological satellite imagery that became available in the 1960s, which revealed many small-scale cloud vortices at high latitudes. The most active polar lows are found over certain ice-free maritime areas in or near the Arctic during the winter, such as the Norwegian Sea, Barents Sea, Labrador Sea and Gulf of Alaska. Polar lows dissipate rapidly when they make landfall. Antarctic systems tend to be weaker than their northern counterparts since the air-sea temperature differences around the continent are generally smaller {{citation needed|reason=As far as I know, the Arctic and Antarctic oceans are both warmer than the air above, at about the freezing point, and the air over the ocean is generally colder in the Antarctic due to the katabatic winds sweeping off the continent|date=July 2015}}. However, vigorous polar lows can be found over the Southern Ocean. During winter, when cold-core lows with temperatures in the mid-levels of the troposphere reach {{convert|-45|C|F}} move over open waters, deep convection forms, which allows [[polar low]] development to become possible.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-tBa1DWYoDIC&pg=PA227|title=Polar lows: mesoscale weather systems in the polar regions|page=224|author1=Erik A. Rasmussen |author2=John Turner |year=2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|access-date=2011-01-27|isbn=978-0-521-62430-5}}</ref> The systems usually have a horizontal length scale of less than {{convert|1000|km|mi}} and exist for no more than a couple of days. They are part of the larger class of [[mesoscale meteorology|mesoscale]] weather systems. Polar lows can be difficult to detect using conventional weather reports and are a hazard to high-latitude operations, such as shipping and gas and oil platforms. Polar lows have been referred to by many other terms, such as polar mesoscale vortex, Arctic hurricane, Arctic low, and cold air depression. Today the term is usually reserved for the more vigorous systems that have near-surface winds of at least 17&nbsp;m/s.<ref>{{cite book|author1=E. A. Rasmussen |author2=J. Turner |year=2003|title=Polar Lows: Mesoscale Weather Systems in the Polar Regions|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=612|isbn=978-0-521-62430-5}}</ref>