A detailed analysis of polar vortex collapse mechanisms and how they relate to occasional North American cold outbreaks.

The science behind the polar vortex is incredibly complicated, and we've only recently begun to understand how changes at our planet's poles impact weather at more moderate latitudes.

A polar vortex disruption is underway. What it means is up in the air. Scientists still can’t yet say how a massive warming in the stratosphere above the North Pole will affect our weather ...

The polar vortex is a counterclockwise spinning area near the top of the atmosphere and usually centered near the North Pole region. This fast spinning vortex is about 50,000 feet in the atmosphere.

A polar vortex “is a large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding both of the Earth’s poles,” the NWS explains. In the Northern Hemisphere, the vortex tends to expand in the winter ...

There are lots of variables at play complicating the forecast, and winter has generally been tamer than many experts expected. But there’s a connection between breakdowns of the polar vortex and ...

The polar vortex is an expansive area of low pressure in the stratosphere, about 10 to 30 miles above the surface, which remains constant above the Earth’s Poles. according to Climate.gov.

The polar vortex split will help cause temperatures to plummet and potentially set the stage for some snowstorms. A recent strong "sudden stratospheric warming" event has caused the vortex to weaken.

Because this is the Polar Vortex Blog, we would love to be able to tell you how the stratospheric polar vortex is doing super cool things that can explain how cold and snowy it’s been in many ...

We've mentioned the polar vortex several times in recent days. We've said, for instance, that it's "a low pressure system that's usually whirling around the North Pole but has weakened and come ...