ClearAirTurbulence500hPa

Clear Air Turbulence (CAT) is sudden severe turbulence occurring in cloudless regions that causes violent buffeting of aircraft. CAT is commonly applied to higher altitude turbulence associated with wind shear. It is caused by patches of air swirling chaotically within the world’s jet streams—strong air currents that circle the globe from west to east and that we see on weather maps as wide, wavy lines that bend around low- and high-pressure centre. It is prominent between 500hPa to 200hPa. Shown here are the CAT Conditions at 500hPa for the Australian Region for the next ten days.