Mean Kinematic Characteristics of Synoptic Easterly Disturbances over the Atlantic |
| |
Authors: | Arona DIEDHIOU Luiz A T MACHADO and Henri LAURENT |
| |
Institution: | IRD/LTHE, BP 53, 38041, Grenoble Cedex 9, France,CPTEC/INPE; Rod. Pdt. Dutra, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brasil,IRD/LTHE, BP 53, 38041, Grenoble Cedex 9, France |
| |
Abstract: | This study investigates the mean kinematic characteristics of the tropical
Atlantic easterly disturbances in January--March (JFM), April--June (AMJ),
July--September (JAS) and October--December (OND) from 1968--1998. For each
season, the preferential tracks of these disturbances in the 3--10-day band
periods were computed and spatialized, as well as their associated
wavelength, velocity and main period, which lies between 3--5 days and
between 6--9 days depending on the track and the season.
Two main tracks are highlighted over the Atlantic Ocean. During OND and JFM
these two tracks are well separated and located in each hemisphere around
15oS and 12.5oN. From AMJ to JAS these tracks migrate northward; in JAS, they merge into one over the northern tropical Atlantic along 17.5oN.The associated wavelength fields exhibit a meridional gradient, with large wavelengths (greater than 4000 km) around the equator, between 5oN and 5oS, and smaller wavelengths outside of this latitude band (between 2500--3500 km). The phase speed is also found to exhibit poleward decreasing values from 12--6 m s-1.
Over the north Atlantic track, 6--9-day disturbances were found to occur
from January to May and approximately from October to December. From June to
September, the 3--5-day waves dominate the synoptic activity. Over the south
Atlantic track, between May and August the synoptic variability is mainly
explained by the 3--5-day disturbances but from January to April and from
September to December both 3--5-day waves and 6--9-day waves can occur. |
| |
Keywords: | synoptic activity African easterly waves tropical Atlantic |
本文献已被 CNKI 维普 万方数据 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
| 点击此处可从《大气科学进展》浏览原始摘要信息 |
| 点击此处可从《大气科学进展》下载免费的PDF全文 |
|