Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes
We examine the horizontal wavenumber spectra of horizontal velocity and potential temperature collected by aircraft above the Pacific Ocean to determine whether gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional (Q-2-D) turbulence, or vortical modes dominate atmospheric fluctuations at scale sizes of 1–100 km and...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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American Geophysical Union (AGU)
2017
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111613 |
| _version_ | 1826200995345989632 |
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| author | Barrick, John D. Cho, John Y. N. Newell, Reginald E. |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Barrick, John D. Cho, John Y. N. Newell, Reginald E. |
| author_sort | Barrick, John D. |
| collection | MIT |
| description | We examine the horizontal wavenumber spectra of horizontal velocity and potential temperature collected by aircraft above the Pacific Ocean to determine whether gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional (Q-2-D) turbulence, or vortical modes dominate atmospheric fluctuations at scale sizes of 1–100 km and altitudes of 2–12 km. We conclude from the study of Doppler-shifting effects that Q-2-D turbulence and/or vortical modes are more prevalent than gravity waves over the ocean, except in the equatorial zone. The results are consistent with recent numerical simulations of Q-2-D turbulence, which show that the characteristic inverse cascade of energy is greatly facilitated by the presence of background rotation. Furthermore, a Stokes-parameter analysis reveals the general paucity of coherent wavelike motions, although specific cases of gravity-wave propagation are observed. Finally, a case study of a long flight segment displays a k⁻³ horizontal velocity variance spectrum at scales longer than about 100 km. A Stokes-parameter analysis indicates that these large-scale fluctuations were likely due to vortical modes rather than inertio-gravity waves. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T11:45:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/111613 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T11:45:00Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | American Geophysical Union (AGU) |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/1116132022-09-27T21:39:10Z Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes Barrick, John D. Cho, John Y. N. Newell, Reginald E. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Cho, John, Y. N. Cho, John Y. N. Newell, Reginald E. We examine the horizontal wavenumber spectra of horizontal velocity and potential temperature collected by aircraft above the Pacific Ocean to determine whether gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional (Q-2-D) turbulence, or vortical modes dominate atmospheric fluctuations at scale sizes of 1–100 km and altitudes of 2–12 km. We conclude from the study of Doppler-shifting effects that Q-2-D turbulence and/or vortical modes are more prevalent than gravity waves over the ocean, except in the equatorial zone. The results are consistent with recent numerical simulations of Q-2-D turbulence, which show that the characteristic inverse cascade of energy is greatly facilitated by the presence of background rotation. Furthermore, a Stokes-parameter analysis reveals the general paucity of coherent wavelike motions, although specific cases of gravity-wave propagation are observed. Finally, a case study of a long flight segment displays a k⁻³ horizontal velocity variance spectrum at scales longer than about 100 km. A Stokes-parameter analysis indicates that these large-scale fluctuations were likely due to vortical modes rather than inertio-gravity waves. United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Grant NAG1-1758) United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Grant NAG1-1901) 2017-09-21T19:04:30Z 2017-09-21T19:04:30Z 1999-07 1998-08 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 2169-8996 2169-897X http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111613 Cho, John Y. N. et al. “Horizontal Wavenumber Spectra of Winds, Temperature, and Trace Gases During the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity Waves, Quasi-Two-Dimensional Turbulence, and Vortical Modes.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 104, D13 (July 1999): 16297–16308 © 1999 American Geophysical Union en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/1999JD900068 Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf American Geophysical Union (AGU) John Cho |
| spellingShingle | Barrick, John D. Cho, John Y. N. Newell, Reginald E. Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title | Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title_full | Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title_fullStr | Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title_short | Horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds, temperature, and trace gases during the Pacific Exploratory Missions: 2. Gravity waves, quasi-two-dimensional turbulence, and vortical modes |
| title_sort | horizontal wavenumber spectra of winds temperature and trace gases during the pacific exploratory missions 2 gravity waves quasi two dimensional turbulence and vortical modes |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111613 |
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