ICELANDIC LOW

large atmospheric low-pressure centre that forms between Iceland and southern Greenland. It causes many of the strong winter winds over the North Atlantic Ocean. In winter, the ocean is considerably warmer than the continents, and this difference is responsible for the location of the Icelandic low, which dominates the wind circulation over the North Atlantic. In summer, the low weakens and often divides into two separate cells. Its January mean sea-level pressure is 996 millibars (29.4 inches of mercury). The Gulf Stream displaces the Icelandic low northward.