12.811 | Spring 2011 | Graduate

Tropical Meteorology

Study Materials

References organized by topics:

Hadley Circulation

Held, Isaac M., and Arthur Y. Hou. “Nonlinear Axially Symmetric Circulations in a Nearly Inviscid Atmosphere.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 37, no. 3 (1980): 515–33.

Lindzen, Richard S., and Arthur V. Hou. “Hadley Circulations for Zonally Averaged Heating Centered off the Equator.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 45, no. 17 (1988): 2416–27.

Plumb, R. Alan, and Arthur Y. Hou. “The Response of a Zonally Symmetric Atmosphere to Subtropical Thermal Forcing: Threshold Behavior.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 49, no. 19 (1992): 1790–9.

Emanuel, Kerry A. “Notes and Correspondence on Thermally Direct Circulations in Moist Atmospheres.” Journal of the Atmospheric Science 52, no. 9 (1995): 1529–34. (PDF)

Pauluis, Olivier. “Boundary Layer Dynamics and Cross–Equatorial Hadley Circulation.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 61 (2004): 1161–73. (PDF)

Walker, Christopher C., and Tapio Schneider. “Eddy Influences on Hadley Circulations: Simulations with an Idealized GCM.” Journal of Atmospheric Sciences 63 (2006): 3333–50. (PDF)

Convection

Emanuel, Kerry A., et al. “On Large–Scale Circulations in Convecting Atmospheres.” Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society 120, no. 519 (1994): 1111–43.

Sobel, Adam H., and Christopher S. Bretherton. “Modeling Tropical Precipitation in a Single Column.” Journal of Climate 13, no. 24 (2000): 4378–92.

Monsoons

Plumb, Alan R., and Arthur Y. Hou. “The Response of a Zonally Symmetric Atmosphere to Subtropical Thermal Forcing: Threshold Behavior.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 49, no. 19 (1992): 1790–9.

Molnar, Peter, and Kerry A. Emanuel. “Temperature Profiles in Radiative–Convective Equilibrium above Surfaces at Different Heights.” Journal of Geophysical Research 104, no. D20 (1999): 24265–71.

Emanuel, Kerry A. “Notes and Correspondence on Thermally Direct Circulations in Moist Atmospheres.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 52, no. 9 (1995): 1529–34. (PDF)

Chou, C., J. D. Neelin, et al. “Ocean–atmosphere–land Feedbacks in an Idealized Monsoon.” Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society 127, no. 576 (2001): 1869–91.

Rodwell, M. J., and B. J. Hoskins. “Subtropical Anticyclones and Summer Monsoons.” Journal of Climate 14, no. 15 (2001): 3192–211.

Intraseasonal Variability

Madden, Roland A., and Paul R. Julian. “Description of Global–Scale Circulation Cells in the Tropics with a 40–50 Day Period.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 29, no. 6 (1972): 1109–23.

Wheeler, Matthew, and George N. Kiladis. “Convectively Coupled Equatorial Waves: Analysis of Clouds and Temperature in the Wavenumber–Frequency Domain.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 56, no. 3 (1999): 374–99.

CalTech Review Paper, 2005 (PDF)

Animated 200 hPa Velocity Potential, from the CPC.

Analyses and Forecasts of 200 hPa Velocity Potential, from the CPC.

El Niño/Southern Oscillation

Eli Tziperman Lecture notes 1 (PDF)

Eli Tziperman Lecture notes 2 (PDF)

Eli Tziperman Lecture notes 3 (PDF)

Eli Tziperman Bibliography (PDF)

NOAA El Niño Theme Page

Easterly Waves

Reed, Richard J., Donald C. Norquist, et al. “The Structure and Properties of African Wave Disturbances as Observed during Phase III of GATE.” Monthly Weather Review 105, no. 3 (1977): 317–33.

Reed, Richard J., and Ernest E. Recker. “Structure and Properties of Syntopic–Scale Wave Disturbances in the Equatorial Western Pacific.” Journal of Atmospheric Sciences 28, no. 7 (1971): 1117–33.

Diedhiou, A., et al. “Composite Pattern of Easterly Disturbances over West Africa and the Tropical Atlantic: A Climatology from the 1979–95 NCEP/NCAR Reanalyses.” Climate Dynamics 18, no. 3–4 (2001): 241–53.

Jeremy, Grist P., et al. “Easterly Waves over Africa. Part II: Observed and Modeled Contrasts between Wet and Dry Years.” Monthly Weather Review 130, no. 2 (2002): 212–25.

Pytharoulis, Ioannis, and Chris Thorncoft. “The Low–Level Structure of African Easterly Waves in 1995.” Monthly Weather Review 127 (1999): 2266–80. (PDF)

Thorncroft, Chris, and Kevin Hodges. “African Easterly Wave Variability and Its Relationship to Atlantic Tropical Cyclone Activity.” Journal of Climate 14, no. 6 (2001): 1166–79.

Petersen, Walter A., et al. “Convection and Easterly Wave Structures Observed in the Eastern Pacific Warm Pool during EPIC–2001.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 60, no. 15 (2003): 1754–73.

Tropical Cyclones

Annual Reviews: Article on Tropical Cyclones

Geosystems Hurricane Module Syllabus

Paper on Tropical Cyclone Structure (see section 3) (PDF)

Emanuel, Kerry A. “The Behavior of a Simple Hurricane Model using a Convective Scheme based on Subcloud–layer Entropy Equilibrium.” Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 52, no. 22 (1995): 3960–8.

Course Info

As Taught In
Spring 2011
Level