A note on some early radiosonde temperature observations in the Antarctic lower stratosphere

The behaviour of the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere has attracted considerable interest, and been compared with the Northern Hemisphere, since the International Geophysical Year (1957–58) when the sudden (explosive or accelerated) springtime warming phenomenon in the Antarctic was first observed. Over the years studies of upper air temperature and wind observations have been made, principally through the spring months when the polar vortex breakdown occurs, utilising both ground-based (rawinsonde, rocket) and more recently, satellite-derived data. Although the radiosonde-derived temperature data are limited both by the number of reporting stations, and the practical difficulty of securing observations much above the 100 hPa level, useful records exist from 1956 or 1957. These have shown that in the 1959 southern spring, the lower stratosphere was relatively colder, and the warming rate through the season was essentially more regular, with little evidence of the marked but short-lived temperature fluctuations usually found. Similar, but not quite such wide-spread conditions occurred again in the 1961 spring. In another study, 30 hPa temperature fields over the Antarctic continent, which could be drawn for the 1967 spring, showed the complexity of the polar vortex breakdown. These features are recalled because extension of the 100 hPa springtime temperature series for the Australian Antarctic station at Casey (66.3°S, 110.5°E) shows that in 1985 and part of 1986, the temperature behaviour there was similar to, but not quite so extreme as that which occurred at Mirny (66.5°S, 93.0°E) in 1959.     

Observations of mid-troposhheric circulation from water vapour radiances of polar orbiting satellites

Water vapour tracers can provide useful information on winds at ≈ 500mb by observing the 6·7μ radiances. This fills the data gap in the cloud motion winds provided by conventional meteorological geostationary satellites. There is no geostationary satellite at present over the Indian Ocean with 6·7μ imaging capability to provide mid-tropospheric winds. The potentials of 6·7μ radiances, available from polar orbiting satellites, for mid-tropospheric circulation features have been examined in this study. Tiros-N satellite data of May 1979 and ECMWF level-IIIb wind data were analysed to relate the radiances with the streamlines. We find that the radiances of 6·7μ from orbiting satellites agree well with the wind field.     

Settling-velocity distributions and sorting processes on a longitudinal dune: A case study

The processes acting on a longitudinal dune are inferred from the response in the area size-sorting characteristics of the sediment of the active layer. The sediment size distributions are determined by settling and are best described by a log-hyperbolic model which provides the most information on size-sorting processes. Size-sorting characteristics are markedly different across the low round-crested part of the dune from cross-sections of the high more sharp-crested part. This results in changes in textural parameters along the lee-side consistent with changes in the lee-side separation vortex. This is the first time that the effect of wind speed up on the lee-side is observed to be reflected in the sediment; it can only be detected with the very sensitive log-hyperbolic parameters.     

Late Quaternary record of sea-level changes in the Antarctic

The Late Quaternary sediment sequence of the continental margin in the eastern Weddell Sea is well suited for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions. Two cores from the upper slope, which contain the sedimentary record of the last 300 ky, have been sedimentologically investigated. Age models are based on lithostratigraphy and are correlated with the stable isotope record. As a result of a detailed analysis of the clay mineral composition, grain size distributions and structures, this sedimentary record provides the first marine evidence that the Antarctic ice sheet extended to the shelf edge during the last glacial.The variations in volume and size of the ice sheet were also simulated in numerical models. Changes in accumulation rate and ice temperature are of some importance, but the model revealed that fluctuations are primarily driven by changes in eustatic sea-level and that the ice edge extended to the shelf edge during the last glacial maximum. This causal relationship implies that the maximum ice extension strongly depends on the magnitude and duration of the sea-level depression during a glacial period. The results of the sedimentological investigations and of the numerical models show that the Antarctic ice sheet follows glacial events in the northern hemisphere by teleconnections of sea level. Correspondence to: H. Grobe     

QUASI-RESONANCE OF BAROCLINIC ATMOSPHERIC WAVES AND EXTRATROPICAL LOW-FREQUENCY OSCILLATION*

In operating the quasi-geostrophic two-layer model,the quasi-resonance occurs possibly in two cases:(1)pure barotropic waves;(2) two baroclinic and one barotropic waves.For case (2),we find the analytical solution of triad amplitude of quasi-resonance and approximate expression for the period of wave energy variation.Both the approximate expression and numerical calculation indicate that this period tends to approach the period (2πε)/(△ω) of the quasi-resonance frequency mismatch △ω itself for the baroclinic atmosphere than for the barotropic atmosphere.Physically,there is a feedback mechanism between the wave phase and amplitude,and the slowly varying phase difference between the barotropic wave and the baroclinic wave causes the conversion of kinetic energy and available potential energy,which gives rise to the wave-related low-frequency oscillation alternatively strengthening and weakening with the oscillation period identical to the above approximate formula.For △ω～(0.1-0.02) 0(ωj),the averaged energy period is 12-43 days and when △ω=0,it is 366 days.Therefore,the occurrence of frequency mismatch △ω is probably a new important mechanism for the formation of extratropical low-frequency oscillation in baroclinic atmosphere as well.     

初夏亚洲季风区环流低频振荡与长江下游持续暴雨

利用主成份分析和非整数波功率谱分析研究了1991年初夏亚洲季风区逐日500 hPa环流的时空分布特征。结果表明，主成份分析得到的前5个特征向量的空间分布与各个季风系统的活动有关，其时间系数存在显著的12—22天准周期振荡和28—31，43—65天的低频振荡周期，它们与长江下游暴雨形成有密切联系。当第一主成份从谷点上升且第二主成份稳定地增大（减小）时，长江下游出现持续暴雨。亚洲副热带海洋加热异常和海陆热力差异产生的不均匀加热分布激发的各种低频波及其相互作用导致向热带外能量频散的异常，是引起长江下游持续暴雨的     

电离层赤道异常两日振荡的数值模拟

近20年来,国外学者对电离层赤道异常问题的数值模拟研究未考虑到大气行星波对潮汐发电机电场的调制效应,因而不能解释赤道异常峰值的逐日变化.本文结果表明二日波对F_2区电子浓度的输运有很大影响.这一方法可以推广到赤道异常各种长周期行星波振荡的数值研究. 本文从非定常等离子体连续方程出发,建立包含行星波振荡对E×B漂移的调制效应的方程,并给出数值模拟的方法以及可与实际观测进行比较的结果.文中取二日波漂移振幅为U_p=0 m/s、5m/s、10m/s,而初位相分别为φ=0°、90°共四种情形进行了模拟,结果表明,二日波的调制可使赤道异常的时空分布以及异常峰值产生明显的逐日变化.在所选取的模型中,取U_p=5m/s,φ=0°所得到的f_0F_2t的二日分布特征与观测较吻合.而u_p约5m/s的变化能引起异常峰值f_0F_2约1-2MHz的起伏,而二天之内f_0F_2的二个峰值表现出约2-4MHz的起伏.     

北京地区臭氧垂直分布的演变趋势与特征的研究——卫星SBUV资料与地面遥感对比分析

利用地面遥感O₃垂直分布的逆转方法〈C〉测量出的北京上空O₃剖面资料,对雨云7号卫星的SBUV系统测量的同地区的O₃垂直分布数据进行了订正.对订正后的长达8年（1979-1986年）的完整的SBUV资料进行了较为仔细的分析,得出了这一时期内的O₃垂直分布长期演变呈下降趋势.并在上层O₃含量的季节变化特征和周期振荡等方面,有新的发现,得出一些有意义的结果.