Archiv: Rossby Waves / planetary waves


15.09.2020 - 16:15 [ Hans Volland / Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics / researchgate.net ]

Periodic variations of solar radiation – a possible source of solar activity-weather effects

(May 1979)

It is suggested that long-lasting co-rotating active longitudes on the Sun may be associated with small variations of the solar radiation reaching the Earth. The oscillations have a basic period of about 27 days and are not expected to have amplitudes greater than 0.1%. They result in a time-varying heat input to the Earth‘s continents and, since the land exchanges heat with the overlying atmosphere, this oscillatory heating process generates large-scale planetary waves, mainly of the Rossby-Haurwitz type, in the atmosphere.

15.09.2020 - 15:42 [ Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics / ScienceDirect.com ]

The effect of the 11-year solar-cycle on the temperature in the upper-stratosphere and mesosphere: Part II numerical simulations and the role of planetary waves

(July 2005)

The numerical simulations presented here suggest a mechanism by which a small change induced by the solar forcing can generate a large atmospheric response.

15.09.2020 - 15:27 [ Potsdam Institute / Youtube ]

Rossby waves and extreme weather

(15.4.2016)

Learn how giant airstreams high in the sky get trapped sometimes – leading to devastating weather extremes on the ground. Copyright: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research PIK and Climate Media Factory. This video was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

15.09.2020 - 15:14 [ US National Science Foundation ]

Researchers find link between Atlantic hurricanes and weather system in East Asia

(11.08.2020)

In the new study, the U.S. National Science Foundation-funded researchers say that a stronger East Asian Subtropical Jet Stream (EASJ) is associated with fewer Atlantic tropical cyclones.

The EASJ is an upper-level river of wind that originates in East Asia and moves west to east across the globe. It carries with it an atmospheric phenomenon called a Rossby wave.

Rossby waves occur naturally in the Earth‘s oceans and atmosphere, forming because of the planet‘s rotation

08.12.2018 - 15:12 [ Leibniz-Institut für Atmosphärenphysik e.V. an der Universität Rostock ]

Influence of the 11-year solar cycle on planetary wave structures in the stratosphere and mesosphere

(2011) The stationary wave structures in the spatial distribution of stratospheric ozone have a significant influence on the local radiative heating and therefore on planetary wave propagation, temperature, circulation and trace gas distributions in the stratosphere and mesosphere. We show that these effects of O3* , which is the zonally asymmetric component of ozone, are modified by the 11-year cycle in solar irradiation,

01.10.2018 - 19:05 [ Nature.com ]

Declining solar activity linked to recent warming

(6.10.2010) An analysis of satellite data challenges the intuitive idea that decreasing solar activity cools Earth, and vice versa. In fact, solar forcing of Earth’s surface climate seems to work the opposite way around — at least during the current Sun cycle. (…)

Contrary to expectations, the net amount of solar energy reaching Earth’s troposphere — the lowest part of the atmosphere — seems to have been larger in 2007 than in 2004, despite the decline in solar activity over that period.

The spectral changes seem to have altered the distribution of ozone molecules above the troposphere.

01.10.2018 - 18:52 [ Leibniz-Institut für Atmosphärenphysik e.V. an der Universität Rostock ]

Influence of the 11-year solar cycle on planetary wave structures in the stratosphere and mesosphere

(2011) The stationary wave structures in the spatial distribution of stratospheric ozone have a significant influence on the local radiative heating and therefore on planetary wave propagation, temperature, circulation and trace gas distributions in the stratosphere and mesosphere. We show that these effects of O3* , which is the zonally asymmetric component of ozone, are modified by the 11-year cycle in solar irradiation,

01.10.2018 - 18:50 [ Potsdam Institute / Youtube ]

Rossby waves and extreme weather

(15.4.2016) Learn how giant airstreams high in the sky get trapped sometimes – leading to devastating weather extremes on the ground. Copyright: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research PIK and Climate Media Factory. This video was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). PIK research on the subject: – Evidence for wave resonance as a key mechanism for generating high-amplitude quasi-stationary waves in boreal Summer

19.08.2018 - 20:50 [ National Center for Biotechnology Information / National Institutes of Health ]

Cosmic Influence on the Sun-Earth Environment

(Dezember 2008) Since the early days of human civilization we have looked at the sky and tried to understand the environment of the Earth and the Universe [1, 2, 3, 4, and 5]. We are continuously collecting data for different environmental parameters. Sudden heat or cold waves, tornados, erratic rainfall and snowfall are being observed and their forewarning has been attempted. Efforts have been made to understand the influence of stars and the Sun, which, although they are distant objects in space, can influence the environment of the Earth. Extragalactic cosmic rays measured as neutron counting rate, represent an energy spectrum, which is being received by the solar system from the distant stars; the particles of cosmic rays are atom –nuclei with almost light velocity [6, 7]. The effects of the Sun on the environment of the Earth were found to be modulated by the geomagnetic field and the ionizing potential of the cosmic rays [8]. Earth directed Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) and its effects on the thermosphere, ionosphere and atmosphere have been studied. During Earth directed CME a beam of electrons (plasma) is pumped towards the Earth [9]. This beam of electrons is highly conductive and generates an electric field that is transmitted to Earth‘s natural plasmosphere and ionosphere. This thin layer of changed electric field further influences the ionosphere and atmosphere of the earth [24]. Since a beam of electrons is carried by an electric current, a magnetic disturbance would be produced. Starbursts are caused by a special variety of neutron star known as a magnetar. These fast-spinning, compact stellar bodies create intense magnetic fields that trigger explosions, which are known as starbursts. Starbursts cause the Sun to develop low Planetary Indices (Kp) and low Electron flux (E-flux) conditions for the Sun-Earth Environment.
(…)
If the electron flux from the sun is low, with the subsequent rise in cosmic rays simultaneously anomalous snowfall and lowering of the atmospheric temperature has been observed. It would be possible to understand the movement of clouds and snowfall, as well as atmospheric moisture, if we could efficiently calculate the influence of space weather and cosmic influence on the thermosphere and atmosphere of the Earth [12]. Based on the same hypothesis it was found that an abnormal rise and sudden fall in E-flux, Kp index and atmospheric temperature has the possibility of triggering earthquakes in active fault areas of the Earth due to temporary changes in the magnetic field of the Earth. The whole process was expressed as a precursor of earthquakes in active fault areas.

19.08.2018 - 19:23 [ Nature.com ]

Declining solar activity linked to recent warming

(6.10.2010) An analysis of satellite data challenges the intuitive idea that decreasing solar activity cools Earth, and vice versa. In fact, solar forcing of Earth‘s surface climate seems to work the opposite way around — at least during the current Sun cycle. (…)

Contrary to expectations, the net amount of solar energy reaching Earth‘s troposphere — the lowest part of the atmosphere — seems to have been larger in 2007 than in 2004, despite the decline in solar activity over that period.

The spectral changes seem to have altered the distribution of ozone molecules above the troposphere.

19.08.2018 - 19:08 [ ann-geophys.net ]

On the solar cycle dependence of winds and planetary waves as seen from mid-latitude D1 LF mesopause region wind measurements

(März 1998)

Two mechanisms of the development of the wave are discussed: Salby (1981a,b) proposes that the quasi-2-day wave is a resonant ampliÆcation of the antisymmetric (3,3)-normal mode. Plumb (1983), however, suggests that the wave appears due to baroclinic instability near the summer stratospheric wind jet. The climatology of the quasi-2-day wave at Collm was described in detail by Jacobi et al. (1997c), who also pointed out that an influence of the 11-year solar cycle on its amplitude could be seen.

In the following, mesopause wind data measured at the Collm Observatory of the University of Leipzig are investigated with respect to a possible solar cycle dependence.

19.08.2018 - 19:07 [ Leibniz-Institut für Atmosphärenphysik e.V. an der Universität Rostock ]

Influence of the 11-year solar cycle on planetary wave structures in the stratosphere and mesosphere

(2011) The stationary wave structures in the spatial distribution of stratospheric ozone have a significant influence on the local radiative heating and therefore on planetary wave propagation, temperature, circulation and trace gas distributions in the stratosphere and mesosphere. We show that these effects of O3* , which is the zonally asymmetric component of ozone, are modified by the 11-year cycle in solar irradiation,

19.08.2018 - 17:25 [ Potsdam Institute / Youtube ]

Rossby waves and extreme weather

(15.4.2016) Learn how giant airstreams high in the sky get trapped sometimes – leading to devastating weather extremes on the ground. Copyright: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research PIK and Climate Media Factory. This video was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). PIK research on the subject: – Evidence for wave resonance as a key mechanism for generating high-amplitude quasi-stationary waves in boreal Summer

19.08.2018 - 17:09 [ National Center for Atmospheric Research, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research / ScienceDaily.com ]

Scientists link California droughts, floods to distinctive atmospheric waves

(6.4.2017) Wavenumber-5 consists of five pairs of alternating high- and low-pressure features that encircle the globe about six miles (10 kilometers) above the ground. It is a type of atmospheric phenomenon known as a Rossby wave, a very large-scale planetary wave that can have strong impacts on local weather systems by moving heat and moisture between the tropics and higher latitudes as well as between oceanic and inland areas and by influencing where storms occur.

The slow-moving Rossby waves at times become almost stationary. When they do, the result can be persistent weather patterns that often lead to droughts, floods, and heat waves.

19.08.2018 - 16:56 [ University Corporation for Atmospheric Research . ]

Planetary waves, first found on Earth, are discovered on Sun

(27.3.2017) for a brief period, from 2011 to 2014, scientists had the unprecedented opportunity to see the Sun‘s entire atmosphere at once. During that time, observations from NASA‘s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which sits between the Sun and Earth, were supplemented by measurements from NASA‘s Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO) mission, which included two spacecraft orbiting the Sun. Collectively, the three observatories provided a 360-degree view of the Sun until contact was lost with one of the STEREO spacecraft in 2014. McIntosh and his co-authors mined the data collected during the window of full solar coverage to see if the large-scale wave patterns might emerge.

„By combining the data from all three satellites we can see the entire Sun, and that‘s important for studies like this because you want the measurements to all be at the same time,“ said Dean Pesnell, SDO project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. „They’re pushing the boundary of how we use solar data to understand the interior of the Sun and where the magnetic field of the Sun comes from.“

19.08.2018 - 16:12 [ Phys.org ]

Waves similar to those controlling weather on Earth have now been found on the Sun

(7.5.2018) The existence of Rossby waves in stars was predicted about forty years ago.

19.08.2018 - 15:53 [ Phys.org ]

Are Rossby waves to blame for Earth‘s magnetic field drifting westward?

(16.5.2018) Humans first became aware of the Earth‘s magnetic field over 400 years ago, and since that time, have been taking measurements of it. As time passed, it became clear that the field was moving in a westerly direction—and nobody knew why. The actual reason is still not known—Bardsley is proposing a new idea: Somehow, Rossby waves in the Earth‘s outer core cause the magnetic drift.

19.08.2018 - 15:51 [ Massachusetts Insitute of Technology ]

Study: Hole in ionosphere is caused by sudden stratospheric warming

(6.8.2018) Geospace research has long established that certain changes in the atmosphere are caused by the sun’s radiation, through mechanisms including solar wind, geomagnetic storms, and solar flares. (…)

One of the more scientifically interesting large-scale atmospheric events is called a sudden stratospheric warming (SSW), in which enormous waves in the troposphere — the lowermost layer of the atmosphere in which we live — propagate upward into the stratosphere. These planetary waves are generated by air moving over geological structures such as large mountain ranges; once in the stratosphere, they interact with the polar jet streams.

19.08.2018 - 14:39 [ Wikipedia ]

Upper-atmospheric models: Planetary waves

According to a report in New Scientist[4] many researchers are in consensus that Rossby waves are acting against the jet stream’s usual pattern and holding it in place. Upper atmospheric studies using National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) data indicates that during July 2010 these upper air stream patterns were most frequently observed in the Northern Hemisphere.[5] Examination of the climatology data over the same period of time indicates that these wild planetary wave meanderings[6] are not a normal aspect of our regional climate patterns. Meanwhile, ongoing research studies at the University of Reading show that unusual patterns in the polar jet stream are more common during a period of low activity in the solar cycle when the observed sun spot activity and their associated solar flares are at their minimum.

19.08.2018 - 14:34 [ SpaceWeatherArchive.com ]

A Mystery in the Mesosphere

(15.8.2018) Harvey and her colleagues are still working to understand how the extra water got up there. One possibility involves planetary wave activity in the southern hemisphere which can, ironically, boost the upwelling of water vapor tens of thousands of miles away in the north. The phenomenon could also be linked to solar minimum, now underway. It is notable that the coldest and wettest years in the mesosphere prior to 2018 were 2008-2009–the previous minimum of the 11-year solar cycle.

19.08.2018 - 13:32 [ National Snow and Ice Data Center ]

New study explains Antarctica’s coldest temperatures

(25.6.2018) That preliminary study has been revised with new data showing that the coldest sites actually reach -98 degrees Celsius (-144 degrees Fahrenheit). The temperatures are observed during the southern polar night, mostly during July and August.

When the researchers first announced they had found the coldest temperatures on Earth five years ago, they determined that persistent clear skies and light winds are required for temperatures to dip this low. But the new study adds a twist to the story: Not only are clear skies necessary, but the air must also be extremely dry, because water vapor blocks the loss of heat from the snow surface.

19.08.2018 - 13:31 [ boingboing.net ]

Coldest temperature ever recorded makes Earth „almost like another planet“

Nearly 15 degrees colder than the previous record-breaking coldest temperature, which was -128 degrees in 1983 near the South Pole, the temperature in Antarctica dropped to -144 degrees Fahrenheit.

Temperatures this low make Antarctica „almost like another planet,“ says lead researcher Ted Scambos at the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colorado, quoted in Forbes.

Taking just a few breaths of air this cold would kill you.

19.08.2018 - 12:57 [ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ]

Watching the Sun for Space Weather

(10.8.2018) “Space weather occasionally occurs in tandem with extreme terrestrial weather,” according to scientists from NCEI, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), and other institutions in an open access Space Weather journal article. “When it does, the struggle to mitigate the impacts to life and property can be dramatically intensified. This one-two punch landed on the socioeconomically and technologically diverse communities of the Caribbean islands during the September 2017 hurricane season.”