1. Part 3. Distribution and Movement of Air
Chapter 8
Atmospheric Circulation and Pressure Distributions

2. Planetary Winds
Well-defined pressure patterns exist across the Earth that induce the global wind patterns on the planet

3. Idealized Single-Cell Convection Model for a Planet

4. The ITCZ is a band of clouds across the tropics

5. The Three-Cell Model Polar cell -- northeasterly winds at surface
Ferrel cell -- southwesterly winds at surface
Subtropical high -- Air subsides (dry climate)
Hadley cell -- tropical convection cell
Intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) -- surface low pressure with clouds and rain

6. The three-celled model vs. reality:
Hadley cells are close approximations of real world equatorial winds
Ferrel and polar cells do not approximate the real world winds very well at all
Model is unrepresentative of westerly flow aloft
Continents and topographic irregularities cause significant variations in real world wind patterns compared to the model

7. Northern hemisphere semi-permanent cells
Semi-Permanent Pressure Cells are large areas of higher or lower atmospheric pressure than the surface average
They may be thermally induced (rising warm air or subsiding cold air) or they may be caused dynamically by converging or diverging wind patterns)
They fluctuate seasonally
Northern hemisphere semi-permanent cells
The Aleutian, Icelandic, and Tibetan lows
Siberian, Hawaiian, and Bermuda-Azores highs
ITCZ (low)

8. Average atmospheric air pressure and wind patterns in January

9. Average atmospheric air pressure and wind patterns in July

10. The Sahel reflects seasonal migration of the ITCZ
The Sahel is rainy during northern hemisphere summer and dry during northern hemisphere winter as the ITCZ shifts north and south through the year. It is the reason for annual flooding of the Nile River.

11. Shifts in the ITCZ affect the Sahel

12. Mid-latitude winds in the middle and upper troposphere are controlled b the pressure gradient force and the Coriolis force, giving the westerly winds
Stronger pressure gradients in winter give stronger westerlies

13. Westerly winds in the upper atmosphere
Air motions directed towards poles
Redirected by Coriolis deflection
Westerly winds aloft result
The polar front and jet streams
Fast stream of air in upper troposphere
Above polar front
Stronger in winter

14. Polar jet profile Strongest pgf here 300 mb 500 mb 800 mb
The fastest middle and upper troposphere mid-latitude winds (the jet stream) are at polar front. There is a sharp temperature contrast and horizontal pgf to the south and north of the polar front.

15. The subtropical jet transports low latitude moisture and energy
Subtropical front and jet

16. Ridges and trough profile

17. A trough over the mid-continent in (b)

18. Rossby waves are the wave-like pattern of ridges and troughs in the upper troposphere winds. Ridges and troughs (Rossby waves) will migrate either east or west with time

19. Sequence of Rossby wave migration -- the dashed line shows the migration and evolution of a trough with time across the country

20. Ocean currents are driven by wind stresses and are deflected by the Coriolis force. Thus, the water moves at about a 45° angle to the winds. The diection of movement of the ocean changes with depth following a pattern called the Ekman spiral.
Western basins usually experience warm ocean currents
Eastern basins usually experience cold ocean currents

22. Upwelling in along-shore winds
Cold waters rise due to Ekman transport

23. Global Ocean Circulation

24. Infrared Satellite Image of the Gulf Stream

25. Major Wind Systems of the Earth
Monsoons
Thermal induced seasonal wind patterns associated with shifts of the ITCZ
Monsoons are characterized by dry offshore winter flow and wet onshore summer flow
The monsoon in East Asia experiences orographic enhancement

26. Winter
monsoon

27. Summer
monsoon

28. Topography enhances monsoonal effects

29. Foehn winds are strong, downslope winds that adiabiatically compress, raising the air temperature. Foehn winds are associated with hot, dry, clear weather
Chinook winds are foehn winds along the east slope of the Rockies (“snow eaters”)
Santa Ana winds are foehn winds that blow from the deserts and over the mountains into the valleys of southern and central California
Katabatic winds are cold, dense winds that flow down mountain slope. They warm as they descend, but they are still colder than the surrounding air.
Boras and mistral winds are forms of katabatic winds in Europe

30. Southern California Santa Ana induced fires

31. Sea and land breezes form due to temperature differences over land and sea. Sea breezes form during the day, and land breezes form at night.
Valley and mountain breezes form due to heating and cooling on mountain sides. Valley breezes form during the day, and mountain breezes form at night (similar to katabatic winds)

32. Sea breeze
development

33. Sea breeze-initiated clouds over Hawaii

34. Valley and mountain breeze development

35. Air-Sea Interactions in the Equatorial Pacific
El Niño, La Niña, and the Walker circulation
El Niño events
Unusually warm water in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean
Linked to global weather anomalies
2 to 5 year recurrence
La Niña events -- wind and temperature patterns reversed of El Niño patterns
Walker circulation
Vertical and horizontal tropospheric flow in the equatorial Pacific that controls areas of heavy rainfall

36. The “Normal” Walker Circulation (no El Niño conditions)

37. ENSO (El Niño/Southern Oscillation) events -- oscillations between El Niño and La Niña conditions
ENSO results in global teleconnection patterns (weather effects far from the equatorial Pacific)

38. El Niño SST Anomalies

40. La Niña SST Anomalies

41. The Southern Oscillation Index

42. The PDO Index
Warmer waters in western tropical Pacific
Cooler waters in western tropical Pacific