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This book gives a coherent development of the current understanding
of the fluid dynamics of the middle latitude atmosphere. It is
primarily aimed at post-graduate and advanced undergraduate level
students and does not assume any previous knowledge of fluid
mechanics, meteorology or atmospheric science. The book will be an
invaluable resource for any quantitative atmospheric scientist who
wishes to increase their understanding of the subject. The
importance of the rotation of the Earth and the stable
stratification of its atmosphere, with their implications for the
balance of larger-scale flows, is highlighted throughout. Clearly
structured throughout, the first of three themes deals with the
development of the basic equations for an atmosphere on a rotating,
spherical planet and discusses scale analyses of these equations.
The second theme explores the importance of rotation and introduces
vorticity and potential vorticity, as well as turbulence. In the
third theme, the concepts developed in the first two themes are
used to give an understanding of balanced motion in real
atmospheric phenomena. It starts with quasi-geostrophic theory and
moves on to linear and nonlinear theories for mid-latitude weather
systems and their fronts. The potential vorticity perspective on
weather systems is highlighted with a discussion of the Rossby wave
propagation and potential vorticity mixing covered in the final
chapter.
The climate of the Earth has undergone many changes and for those
times when geologic data are widespread and abundant the Mesozoic
appears to have been one of the warmest intervals. This was a time
during which the single continent Pangea disintegrated into
continental units similar to those of today, a time when there were
no significant polar ice caps and sea level was generally much
higher than at the present time, and a time when dinosaurs
apparently dominated terrestrial faunas and the flowering plants
evolved. Understanding this alien world, ancestral to ours, is
intrinsically interesting, intellectually challenging, and offers
opportunities for more effective targeting of sites where
commercially important geological resources may be found. It also
provides critical insights into the operation of coupled Earth
systems (biospheric, atmospheric, hydrospheric and geospheric)
under extreme 'greenhouse' conditions, and therefore may have
relevance to possible future global change. Our intention in
organizing this Discussion Meeting was to bring together those who
gather and interpret geologic data with those who model global
climates from first principles. The community of workers who study
the Quaternary have made significant advances by integrating and
comparing palaeodata and climate model experiments. Although we
have focused not on the Quaternary 'icehouse' but on the Mesozoic
'hothouse' climate we are well aware that approaches used in the
study of the Quaternary may have relevance to earlier times.
The climate of the Earth has undergone many changes and for those
times when geologic data are widespread and abundant the Mesozoic
appears to have been one of the warmest intervals. This was a time
during which the single continent Pangea disintegrated into
continental units similar to those of today, a time when there were
no significant polar ice caps and sea level was generally much
higher than at the present time, and a time when dinosaurs
apparently dominated terrestrial faunas and the flowering plants
evolved. Understanding this alien world, ancestral to ours, is
intrinsically interesting, intellectually challenging, and offers
opportunities for more effective targeting of sites where
commercially important geological resources may be found. It also
provides critical insights into the operation of coupled Earth
systems (biospheric, atmospheric, hydrospheric and geospheric)
under extreme 'greenhouse' conditions, and therefore may have
relevance to possible future global change. Our intention in
organizing this Discussion Meeting was to bring together those who
gather and interpret geologic data with those who model global
climates from first principles. The community of workers who study
the Quaternary have made significant advances by integrating and
comparing palaeodata and climate model experiments. Although we
have focused not on the Quaternary 'icehouse' but on the Mesozoic
'hothouse' climate we are well aware that approaches used in the
study of the Quaternary may have relevance to earlier times.
This book gives a coherent development of the current understanding
of the fluid dynamics of the middle latitude atmosphere. It is
primarily aimed at post-graduate and advanced undergraduate level
students and does not assume any previous knowledge of fluid
mechanics, meteorology or atmospheric science. The book will be an
invaluable resource for any quantitative atmospheric scientist who
wishes to increase their understanding of the subject. The
importance of the rotation of the Earth and the stable
stratification of its atmosphere, with their implications for the
balance of larger-scale flows, is highlighted throughout. Clearly
structured throughout, the first of three themes deals with the
development of the basic equations for an atmosphere on a rotating,
spherical planet and discusses scale analyses of these equations.
The second theme explores the importance of rotation and introduces
vorticity and potential vorticity, as well as turbulence. In the
third theme, the concepts developed in the first two themes are
used to give an understanding of balanced motion in real
atmospheric phenomena. It starts with quasi-geostrophic theory and
moves on to linear and nonlinear theories for mid-latitude weather
systems and their fronts. The potential vorticity perspective on
weather systems is highlighted with a discussion of the Rossby wave
propagation and potential vorticity mixing covered in the final
chapter.
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