A STUDY OF THE LARGE-SCALE SPECTRA OF SOME METEOROLOGICAL PARAMETERS

Abstract

Methods are developed for determining the contribution by each harmonic wave component to the geostrophic kinetic energy of meridional and zonal motion, and to the geostrophic fluxes of angular momentum and enthalpy. Evaluations are carried out for each day of January 1951 for selected latitudes and pressure surfaces and the resulting spectral distributions discussed. Salient features are large spatial and temporal variations of the energy spectra and unexpectedly large contributions by the lower wave numbers to the fluxes of momentum and heat.