Polar high

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The polar highs are areas of high atmospheric pressure around the north and south poles. The cold temperatures in the polar regions cause air to descend to create the high pressure (a process called subsidence), just as the warm temperatures around the equator case air to rise to create the low pressure doldrums. Surface temperatures under the polar highs are the coldest on Earth, with no month having an average temperature of above freezing. Regions under the polar high also experience very low levels of precipitation, which leads them to be known as "polar deserts".

Air flows outwards from the poles to create the polar easterlies in the arctic and antarctic areas.