Tabla de Contenidos: “…Introduction: Polar lows and other mesoscale lows in the polar regions ; A brief historical review ; Definition ; Nomenclature ; Classification ; Cloud signatures -- Climatology: The Arctic ; The Antarctic -- Observational studies: The Arctic ; The Antarctic -- Theoretical investigations: Introduction ; Baroclinic instability ; Barotropic instability ; Potential vorticity thinking ; The role of thermal instability in polar low formation and maintenance ; Further theoretical considerations ; Summary and concluding remarks -- Numerical simulation: The Arctic ; The Antarctic -- Forecasting of polar lows: Aspects common to both polar regions ; Aspects of forecasting specific to the Arctic ; Aspects of forecasting specific to the Antarctic ; Future work required to improve forecasts -- Conclusions and future research needs: The spatial distribution of polar lows and other high latitude mesoscale vortices ; Possible climatic effects of polar lows ; Observational and modelling studies ; Formation and development mechanisms ; Forecasting of polar lows ; Final thoughts.…”