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The Atmosphere

The Atmosphere. Wind Field Drives upper layer flows of the major gyres Net Heat & Freshwater Exchanges Drives buoyancy flows (like the conveyor belt) Chapter 2 - Ocean Circulation (we will skip parts). Stupid things that drive Dave crazy. Easterly winds are from the east (to the west)

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The Atmosphere

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  1. The Atmosphere • Wind Field • Drives upper layer flows of the major gyres • Net Heat & Freshwater Exchanges • Drives buoyancy flows (like the conveyor belt) • Chapter 2 - Ocean Circulation (we will skip parts)

  2. Stupid things that drive Dave crazy... • Easterly winds are from the east (to the west) • Westward winds are to the west (from the east) • Oceanographers say westward winds • Meteorologists say easterly winds • I’m right...

  3. Major Features of the Global Wind Field • Trades to Westerlies to Easterlies (toward poles) • Convergence of trades leads to ITCZ • Ascending moist air at equator • Drying & subsidence leads to a high over the subtropical ocean • Polar front is another region of convergence

  4. Global Salinity & Air-Sea Fluxes

  5. Global Salinity

  6. Global Wind Field

  7. Hadley Cells

  8. Major Features of the Global Wind Field • Winds blow from high to low pressure • BUT Earth rotation turns them to the right (left) in the northern (southern) hemisphere • Hence, winds are mostly zonal (along zones of constant latitude)

  9. Earth Rotation • Earth’s rotation gives rise to a fictitious force called the Coriolis force • It accounts for the apparent deflection of motions viewed in our rotating frame • Analogies • throwing a ball from a merry-go-round • sending a ball to the sun

  10. Earth Rotation

  11. Earth Rotation • Motions in a rotating frame will appear to deflect to the right (NH) • Deflection will be to the right in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern • No apparent deflection right on the equator

  12. Real Winds • Real winds are not zonal • Land masses mess this up • Seasonal changes happen • intensification in high latitudes • monsoons

  13. July climatology

  14. January climatology

  15. Real Winds • Location of ITCZ shifts seasonally • Seasonal changes in the monsoon • SW in July • NE in January • Driven in large degree by greater seasonal heating on the land

  16. Cyclones/Anticyclones • Mid-latitude storms do most of the atmospheric heat transport • Cyclones • low pressure & CCW (NH) rotation • Anticyclones • high pressure & CW rotation

  17. Cyclones/Anticyclones Combination of cyclones & anticyclones lead to poleward heat transport

  18. Cyclones/Anticyclones

  19. Cyclones/Anticyclones

  20. Air Sea Interactions • We’ve seen this. • Warming of ocean leads to high SST • High SST leads to warm atmosphere • Tropics - High SST corresponds to regions of rising moist air

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