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Role of Rossby wave breaking in the variability of large-scale atmospheric transport and mixing

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dc.contributor.authorLiu, Chengji, author
dc.contributor.authorBarnes, Elizabeth A., advisor
dc.contributor.authorBirner, Thomas, committee member
dc.contributor.authorKiladis, George N., committee member
dc.contributor.authorSchubert, Wayne H., committee member
dc.contributor.authorVenayagamoorthy, Karan, committee member
dc.date.accessioned2018-01-17T16:45:35Z
dc.date.available2018-01-17T16:45:35Z
dc.date.issued2017
dc.description.abstractWe demonstrate that Rossby wave breaking (RWB) plays an important role in both horizontal and vertical large-scale transport/mixing in both observations and idealized general circulation models. In the horizontal direction, RWB contributes to a substantial fraction of transient moisture flux into the Arctic. In the vertical direction, RWB modifies thermal stratification near the tropopause which leads to enhanced mass exchange across the tropopause. In understanding the variability of RWB related transport and mixing, we show that it is essential to separate the two types of RWB – anticyclonic wave breaking (AWB) and cyclonic wave breaking (CWB) – for two fundamental differences between them. The first difference is the opposite relationship between jet positions and their frequencies of occurrence. For both horizontal transport of moisture into the Arctic and vertical mixing of ozone across the tropopause, the robust relationship between jet position and AWB/CWB frequency is of first order importance in explaining the large-scale transport/mixing anomaly patterns influenced by climate variabilities involving jet shifting, such as the El-Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). The second robust difference is the mixing strength exhibited by individual AWB and CWB events. In idealized lifecycle and climate simulations, as well as reanalysis data, CWB consistently exhibits stronger mixing strength than AWB. Combined with the robust relationship between jet variability and AWB/CWB frequency, such a difference is demonstrated to translate into a decrease in total upper troposphere diffusivity as the jet shifts poleward in an idealized climate simulation.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediumdoctoral dissertations
dc.identifierLiu_colostate_0053A_14460.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10217/185648
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectextreme moisture transport
dc.subjectmodified Lagrangian coordinate
dc.subjectstratosphere-troposphere exchange
dc.subjectlarge-scale transport and mixing
dc.subjectdouble tropopauses
dc.subjectRossby wave breaking
dc.titleRole of Rossby wave breaking in the variability of large-scale atmospheric transport and mixing
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineAtmospheric Science
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

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