Low pressure system off Iceland - Low - pressure system near Iceland coasts. - Low...

Low pressure system off Iceland - Low - pressure system near Iceland coasts. - Low pressure region near Iceland coast seen by Aqua satellite on September 4, 2003. A beautifully - formed low - pressure system swirls off the southeastern coast of Greenland, illustrating the maxim that nature abhors a vacuum.” The vacuum in this case would be a region of low atmospheric pressure. In order to fill this void, air from a nearby high - pressure system moves in, in this case bringing clouds along for the ride. And because this low - pressure system occurred in the Northern Hemisphere, the winds spun in toward the center of the low - pressure system in a counter - clockwise direction; a phenomenon known as the Coriolis force (in the Southern Hemisphere, the Coriolis force would be manifested in a clockwise direction of movement). The clouds in the image resembled pulled cotton and lace as they spun in a lazy hurricane - like pattern. This huge system swirled over the Denmark Strait in between Greenland and Iceland. The image was taken by the Aqua MODIS instrument on September 4, 2003.