Eliassen-Palm diagnostics of wave-mean flow interaction in the GFDL 'SKYHI' general circulation model.

Abstract

The Eliassen-Palm flux is important in analytical studies of small-amplitude waves where it provides a powerful and elegant tool for the description of wave propagation in mean zonal shear flows, as well as for analysis of the effective mean zonal force induced by the waves. Furthermore, it has recently been used as a diagnostic in a number of studies of atmospheric data and numerical models of specific dynamical phenomena. In this paper, we apply it to the GFDL 'SKYHI' global general circulation model of the troposphere-stratosphere-mesosphere and describe computations of the primitive equations, isobaric co-ordinate form of the Eliassen-Palm flux and its divergence under conditions of annual-mean insolation.-from Authors