These short-wave cooling and long-wave warming effects make mid-latitude clouds a key contributor to the global radiative budget and thus a potential source of significant radiative feedbacks in climate change situations (Chapter 13). Changes in the climate system, such as a climate warming, could affect meridional temperature gradients as well as the moisture availability of the atmosphere, which, through latent heat release, constitutes an additional energy source for baroclinic storms. Consequently, significant changes in the track and strength of baroclinic storms could occur with climate warming, and these changes would alter the mid-latitude cloud field and produce radiative and hydrologic climate feedbacks. At the same time, altered cloud fields through their radiative effects and latent heat release have the ability to change temperature gradient patterns which in return can alter the characteristics of the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation. The examination of mid-latitude cloud processes and feedbacks, therefore, requires a detailed understanding of the relationships between the dynamical features of baroclinic storms and the properties of the clouds that they produce.
Mid-latitude Atmospheric Dynamics Pdf Free
This chapter will examine in detail the relationships between cloud properties and atmospheric dynamics in mid-latitude regions. Cloud structures aud formation mechanisms in baroclinic storms will be examined first, with an emphasis on the latest satellite retrievals of cloud properties. Next, the climatologies of mid-latitude clouds and their radiative properties will be discussed. Then, the interactions of the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation with clouds and their radiative properties will be examined, including an examination of the effects of clouds on the mid-latitude circulation. Finally, the chapter will address how mid-latitude clouds may be aftected in as well as affect a changing climate.
Only two terms remain in both equations. One term is the pressure gradient force and the other is the Coriolis force. Since Du Dt MathType@MTEF@5@5@+=faaagCart1ev2aqaKnaaaaWenf2ys9wBH5garuavP1wzZbItLDhis9wBH5garmWu51MyVXgaruWqVvNCPvMCG4uz3bqee0evGueE0jxyaibaieYlf9irVeeu0dXdh9vqqj=hHeeu0xXdbba9frFj0=OqFfea0dXdd9vqaq=JfrVkFHe9pgea0dXdar=Jb9hs0dXdbPYxe9vr0=vr0=vqpi0dc9GqpWqaaeaabiGaciaacaqabeaadaqaaqaaaOqaamaalaaabaGaamiraiaadwhaaeaacaWGebGaamiDaaaaaaa@3660@ is much smaller than either the pressure gradient force or the Coriolis force, these two forces must be about in balance. We call this balance the Geostrophic Balance. It is very important for understanding atmospheric dynamics and we will talk about its consequences in more detail later. 2ff7e9595c
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