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Atlanta, United States
ATL (Atlanta, United States) sits at 33.64°N, 84.43°W, 1,026 ft elevation — with the Appalachians nearby.
The busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic.
Computed from ATL's geography and climate
The jet stream meanders across this latitude seasonally — ATL sees its strongest CAT exposure in December–February, when the polar jet pushes equatorward and routes intersect it more often. June-onwards departures climb into cleaner upper-level flow. The Appalachians sit upwind of ATL on prevailing flow days, generating mountain-wave turbulence that can extend several hundred kilometres downwind at cruise level. The lee-wave risk is highest when December–February winds at FL300 cross the Appalachians at near-perpendicular angles. Warm-season convection (June–August) drives the dominant turbulence pattern from ATL — afternoon thunderstorm cells are routed around but their wake turbulence and gust fronts can still affect arrivals and departures.
Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) often route around terrain; on strong-wind days, low-level turbulence in the lee of the hills is common in the first few thousand feet.
Summer thunderstorms in the Southeast can cause convective turbulence. The airport is well south of the primary jet stream, making clear air turbulence less common on domestic routes.
Winter (December–February) brings the strongest jet-stream activity — that's when long-haul departures most often log clear-air turbulence at cruise. Summer (June–August) is peak thunderstorm season — convective turbulence is the dominant warm-season risk. Mountain-wave activity near the Appalachians peaks in the cold season when upper-level winds blow hardest across the range.
Get a real-time turbulence forecast for any scheduled flight out of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, with live wind, jet-stream analysis and pilot reports.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is best described as a mountain-wave sensitive airport. The jet stream meanders across this latitude seasonally — ATL sees its strongest CAT exposure in December–February, when the polar jet pushes equatorward and routes intersect it more often. June-onwards departures climb into cleaner upper-level flow. The Appalachians sit upwind of ATL on prevailing flow days, generating mountain-wave turbulence that can extend several hundred kilometres downwind at cruise level. The lee-wave risk is highest when December–February winds at FL300 cross the Appalachians at near-perpendicular angles. Warm-season convection (June–August) drives the dominant turbulence pattern from ATL — afternoon thunderstorm cells are routed around but their wake turbulence and gust fronts can still affect arrivals and departures.
Winter (December–February) brings the strongest jet-stream activity — that's when long-haul departures most often log clear-air turbulence at cruise. Summer (June–August) is peak thunderstorm season — convective turbulence is the dominant warm-season risk. Mountain-wave activity near the Appalachians peaks in the cold season when upper-level winds blow hardest across the range. Peak turbulence window: November–February (strong jet). Typically calmest: May–September.
Yes — the Appalachians lie close enough to generate mountain-wave turbulence on days with strong upper-level winds. These waves can propagate hundreds of kilometres downwind, so they sometimes affect cruise even after you've left the immediate area.
We combine live NOAA Aviation Weather Center data (PIREPs, SIGMETs, AIRMETs) with physics-based Ellrod and Richardson-number calculations derived from Open-Meteo pressure-level wind and temperature data. If a source is unavailable for a waypoint we show an em dash rather than invent a number.
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