edu.ucar.opensky::articles:14050 UCAR/NCAR - Library OpenSky Support PO Box 3000 Boulder CO 80307-3000 opensky@ucar.edu http://opensky.ucar.edu/ homepage pointOfContact 2025-12-26T03:30:47.067228 ISO 19115-2 Geographic Information - Metadata - Part 2: Extensions for Imagery and Gridded Data ISO 19115-2:2009(E) https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7nk3g0t On the simulation of the quasi-biennial oscillation in the Community Atmosphere Model, version 5 2014-03-27T00:00:00Z publication https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7nk3g0t https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JD021122 Richter, Jadwiga H. author Solomon, A. author Bacmeister, Julio author UCAR/NCAR - Library publisher The quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) of the tropical zonal mean wind is a prominent feature of the tropical stratosphere. The easterly and westerly wind regimes alternate with a period of about 28 months. The QBO is believed to be forced by a combination of equatorial waves, in particular, Kelvin and mixed Rossby-gravity waves, as well as smaller-scale gravity waves. Although the QBO is well observed and basic forcing mechanism well understood, it has been a challenge to simulate in General Circulation Models (GCMs). In this paper we examine the role of vertical resolution and gravity wave parameterization on the simulation of the QBO in the Community Atmosphere Model, version 5. We show that in this model vertical resolution of 500 m and adequate gravity wave drag are needed to obtain a realistic QBO. At 500 m vertical resolution, CAM5 generates significantly more mixed Rossby-gravity and Kelvin waves as compared to CAM5 with 700 m or 1200 m vertical resolution. These waves then contribute to the forcing of the easterly and westerly phases of the QBO, respectively. In this work, we also briefly explore the effects of horizontal resolution on the QBO and conclude that the QBO can be adequately represented with horizontal resolution of∼200 km as long as vertical resolution of the model is fine enough. UCAR/NCAR - Library OpenSky Support PO Box 3000 Boulder CO 80307-3000 opensky@ucar.edu http://opensky.ucar.edu/ homepage pointOfContact PDF Text theme Resource Type 2016-01-01T00:00:00Z publication Copyright 2014 American Geophysical Union. None eng geoscientificInformation