Physics
Scientific paper
May 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006agusm.u52a..04z&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #U52A-04
Physics
5700 Planetary Sciences: Fluid Planets, 6295 Venus, 0343 Planetary Atmospheres (5210, 5405, 5704), 3319 General Circulation (1223), 3346 Planetary Meteorology (5445, 5739)
Scientific paper
The equatorial superrotation of a planetary atmosphere is one of the fundamental problems in the global circulation of planetary atmospheres. To maintain an equatorial superrotation, eddies that transport angular momentum against the background mean momentum gradient are required by Hide's theorem. There exists a nearly parallel theoretical dichotomy with regard to the form of eddies for maintenance of a stable equatorial superrotation: the central issue is if/how (a) horizontal or (b) vertical eddies organize momentum flux toward the source region of the equatorial jet center(s). For the atmosphere of a slowly rotating planetary body, such as Venus or Titan, where turbulence motions are essentially three-dimensional, equatorial superrotation can be best examined based on the momentum budget in which externally forced waves are better candidates for organizing the counter-gradient transport of angular momentum. For the atmosphere of a fast rotating planetary body, such as Jupiter or Saturn where large-scale motions are strongly influenced by planetary rotation, conservation of Ertel's potential vorticity is a better framework for understanding the superrotation. The inverse cascade of energy originating internally through nonlinear wave-wave interactions in a fast-rotating planetary atmosphere could well be the backbone for the organized eddies. In this talk, I will focus on recent progress on the solution and the consequences of the equatorial superrotation of a slowly rotating planetary atmosphere. The momentum budget describing major dynamical processes that maintain stable equatorial superrotation for the atmospheres of Venus, Saturn's moon Titan, and also possibly the early Earth will be examined. In addition, the technical difficulties in simulating equatorial superrotation in a slowly rotating planetary atmosphere by GCMs without spurious momentum sources will also be discussed.
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