Journal of Spatial Analysis

In this study, the synoptic patterns of the warm period of the year that lead to the cessation of rainfall and the creation of short to long dry spells were identified and analyzed. For this purpose, the rainfall data of 8 synoptic stations were used to identify the dry spells of the warm season for 30 years (1986 to 2015). The average daily rainfall of each station was used as the threshold value to distinguish between wet and dry spells. Then, according to the effects of dry spells, they were defined subjectively and objectively with different durations. Thus, 5 numerical periods of 12 to 15, 15 to 30, 30 to 45, 45 to 60 and more than 60 days were identified. By factor analysis of Geopotential height data at 500 hPa, 4 components were identified for each period and a total of 20 components for 5 dry spells. Therefore, 5 common patterns control the stable weather conditions of dry spells. Most dry days are caused by subtropical high-pressure nuclei, which have a wide, even, dual-core, triple-core arrangement. The effect of subtropical high pressure on the dryness of the southern coast of the Caspian Sea is quite evident. Other dry days were caused by southerly currents, weakening of northern currents, and the trough Anticyclones’ area. Also, the anomaly map of the components days at the 500 hPa level showed that the anticyclones and cyclones correspond to the positive and negative phases of the anomalies, respectively.