The Role of β-effect and a Uniform Current on Tropical Cyclone Intensity

A limited-area primitive equation model is used to study the role of the β-effect and a uniform current on tropical cyclone (TC) intensity.It is found that TC intensity is reduced in a non-quiescent environment compared with the case of no uniform current.On an f-plane,the rate of intensification of a tropical cyclone is larger than that of the uniform flow.A TC on a β-plane intensifies slower than one on an f-plane.The main physical characteristic that distinguishes the experiments is the asymmetric thermodynamic (including convective) and dynamic structures present when either a uniform flow or β-effect is introduced.But a fairly symmetric TC structure is simulated on an f-plane.The magnitude of the warm core and the associated subsidence are found to be responsible for such simulated intensity changes.On an f-plane,the convection tends to be symmetric,which results in strong upper-level convergence near the center and hence strong forced subsidence and a very warm core.On the other hand,horizontal advection of temperature cancels part of the adiabatic heating and results in less warming of the core,and hence the TC is not as intense.This advective process is due to the tilt of the vortex as a result of the β-effect.A similar situation occurs in the presence of a uniform flow.Thus,the asymmetric horizontal advection of temperature plays an important role in the temperature distribution.Dynamically,the asymmetric angular momentum (AM) flux is very small on an f-plane throughout the troposphere.However,the total AM exports at the upper levels for a TC either on aβ-plane or with a uniform flow environment are larger because of an increase of the asymmetric as well as symmetric AM export on the plane at radii ＞450 km,and hence there is a lesser intensification.     

A NOTE ON THE USE OF NOMOGRAMS FOR APPARENT RESISTIVITY COMPUTATION*

Nomograms are presented for the purpose of rapid computation of the apparent resistivity functions from the field data for symmetrical and unsymmetrical linear electrode arrays.     

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON BED SHEAR STRESS AND SEDIMENT TRANSPORT IN A MEANDERING LABORATORY CHANNEL

1 INTRODUCTION River erosion is a complex phenomenon. The rate of bank retreat is determined by flow, bed topography, sediment transport, bank properties, and water quality. Prediction of future river planform changes and the knowledge of river erosion and river meandering are required for land use planning in alluvial river valleys and determining locations for bridges and hydraulic structures. The control of riverbank erosion requires prediction of flow and bed features in a meanderin…     

On the Subdivisions of the Red Beds of South-Eastern China

Two subdivisions of the Red Beds can be distinguished,the older being un-conformably overlain by the younger.They are tentatively considered Cretaceousand early Tertiary in age respectively.A critical review shows that the Tanhsiaformation of K.L.Fong represents the lower part of the younger Red Bedswhile his Nanhsiung formation,instead of overlying the Tanhsia,is referableto the older Red Series.Two types of the older Red Beds are distinguishedaccording to their petrological contents:the common type an...     

Large-scale Circulation Control of the Occurrence of Low-level Turbulence at Hong Kong International Airport

This study identifies the atmospheric circulation features that are favorable for the occurrence of low-level turbulence at Hong Kong International Airport [below 1600 feet(around 500 m)]. By using LIDAR data at the airport, turbulence and nonturbulence cases are selected. It is found that the occurrence of turbulence is significantly related to the strength of the southerly wind at 850 h Pa over the South China coast. On the other hand, the east–west wind at this height demonstrates a weak relation to the occurrence. This suggests that turbulence is generated by flow passing Lantau Island from the south. The southerly wind also transports moisture from the South China Sea to Hong Kong, reducing local stability. This is favorable for the development of strong turbulence. It is also noted that the strong southerly wind during the occurrence of low-level turbulence is contributed by an anomalous zonal gradient of geopotential in the lower troposphere over the South China Sea. This gradient is caused by the combination of variations at different timescales. These are the passage of synoptic extratropical cyclones and anticyclones and the intraseasonal variation in the western North Pacific subtropical high. The seasonal variation in geopotential east of the Tibetan Plateau leads to a seasonal change in meridional wind, by which the frequency of low-level turbulence is maximized in spring and minimized in autumn.