Tropical Cyclone Eye Dynamics

Abstract

A new perspective of the dynamics of a tropical cyclone eye is given in which eye subsidence and the adiabatic warming accompanying it are accounted for directly from the equations of motion. Subsidence is driven by an adverse, axial gradient of perturbation pressure which is associated principally with the decay and/or radial spread of the tangential wind field with height at those levels of the cyclone where the tangential winds are approximately in gradient wind balance. However, this pressure gradient is almost exactly opposed by the buoyancy force field due to adiabatic warming. This corroborates with observational data. The relationship between the present view of eye dynamics and those of Malkus and Kuo and a recent study by Willoughby is discussed in detail.