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Title

Multiscale interactions in an idealized Walker cell: Analysis with isentropic streamfunctions

Abstract

A new approach for analyzing multiscale properties of the atmospheric flow is proposed in this study. For that, the recently introduced isentropic streamfunctions are employed here for scale decomposition with Haar wavelets. This method is applied subsequently to a cloud-resolving simulation of a planetary Walker cell characterized by pronounced multiscale flow. The resulting set of isentropic streamfunctions--obtained at the convective, meso-, synoptic, and planetary scales--capture many important features of the across-scale interactions within an idealized Walker circulation. The convective scale is associated with the shallow, congestus, and deep clouds, which jointly dominate the upward mass flux in the lower troposphere. The synoptic and planetary scales play important roles in extending mass transport to the upper troposphere, where the corresponding streamfunctions mainly capture the first baroclinic mode associated with large-scale overturning circulation. The intermediate-scale features of the flow, such as anvil clouds associated with organized convective systems, are extracted with the mesoscale and synoptic-scale isentropic streamfunctions. Multiscale isentropic streamfunctions are also used to extract salient mechanisms that underlie the low-frequency variability of the Walker cell. In particular, the lag of a few days of the planetary scale behind the convective scale indicates the importance of the convective scale in moistening the atmosphere and strengthening the planetary-scale overturning circulation. Furthermore, the mesoscale and synoptic scale lags behind the planetary scale reflect the strong dependence of convective organization on the background shear.

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document

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http://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d7zg6ttm

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eng

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geoscientificInformation

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publication

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2016-01-01T00:00:00Z

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publication

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2016-03-01T00:00:00Z

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Copyright 2016 American Meteorological Society (AMS). Permission to use figures, tables, and brief excerpts from this work in scientific and educational works is hereby granted provided that the source is acknowledged. Any use of material in this work that is determined to be "fair use" under Section 107 or that satisfies the conditions specified in Section 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law (17 USC, as revised by P.L. 94-553) does not require the Society's permission. Republication, systematic reproduction, posting in electronic form on servers, or other uses of this material, except as exempted by the above statements, requires written permission or license from the AMS. Additional details are provided in the AMS Copyright Policies, available from the AMS at 617-227-2425 or amspubs@ametsoc.org. Permission to place a copy of this work on this server has been provided by the AMS. The AMS does not guarantee that the copy provided here is an accurate copy of the published work.

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OpenSky Support

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UCAR/NCAR - Library

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PO Box 3000

Boulder

80307-3000

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opensky@ucar.edu

web address

http://opensky.ucar.edu/

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