Hemispheric water balance for the IGY

Abstract

A study of the hemispheric water balance over the northern hemisphere during the IGY covering the mean conditions for the calendar year 1958 is presented. The study includes analyses of the amount of precipitable water, of the vertically integrated water vapor transport vector field and of the divergence of water vapor transport for the hemisphere. Some implications of the water vapor divergence field are deduced which are important for hydrology and oceanography. Finally, the water vapor balance is discussed in the light of various meteorological considerations.