Application of Comprehensive Global Models to Problems in the Dynamics of the Troposphere and Stratosphere

University Of Hawaii, Honolulu

Investigators

Abstract

The project will investigate the impact of mesoscale motions on climate through careful analysis of extended integrations of a state-of-the-art model having very high horizontal and vertical resolution. Key issues in tropospheric-stratospheric dynamics, including interaction of very disparate scales of motion, will be addressed. Interest in more accurate modeling of the stratospheric circulation has recently been rekindled by observational analysis that suggests that a primary mode of tropospheric variability in the high latitudes is influenced by the downward migration of annular anomalies from the stratosphere. Dr. Hamilton will conduct a dynamically oriented diagnostic analysis of the high-resolution general circulation model (GCM) integrations completed at NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton. The objective will be to understand the role of small-scale processes, including gravity waves generated in the troposphere by deep convection, in the evolution and maintenance of the stratospheric general circulation. This research will lead to improved parameterization of small-scale processes in global climate models, and advance the understanding and modeling of dynamical interactions of the troposphere and stratosphere.