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Barotropic Rossby waves do not vary in the vertical [clarification needed], and have the fastest propagation speeds. The baroclinic wave modes, on the other hand, do vary in the vertical. They are also slower, with speeds of only a few centimeters per second or less. [5] Most investigations of Rossby waves have been done on those in Earth's ...
The outflow of air mass from the cell creates harmonic waves in the atmosphere known as Rossby waves. These ultra-long waves determine the path of the polar jet stream, which travels within the transitional zone between the tropopause and the Ferrel cell. By acting as a heat sink, the polar cell moves the abundant heat from the equator toward ...
500mb geopotential height averaged between October 9–21, 2010 illustrating Rossby wave pattern with the zonal wavenumber 4. DOE AMIP reanalysis data.. In meteorological applications, a zonal wavenumber or hemispheric wavenumber is the dimensionless number of wavelengths fitting within a full circle around the globe at a given latitude: [1]
For very long waves (as the zonal wavenumber approaches zero), the non-dispersive phase speed is approximately: / = / (+), which indicates that these long equatorial Rossby waves move in the opposite direction (westward) of Kelvin waves (which move eastward) with speeds reduced by factors of 3, 5, 7, etc.
The Rossby number is a measure of the departure of the vorticity from that of solid body rotation. The Rossby number must be small for the concept of baroclinic instability to be relevant. When the Rossby number is large, other kinds of instabilities, often referred to as inertial, become more relevant. [citation needed]
The eastward speed of propagation of these waves can be derived for an inviscid slowly moving layer of fluid of uniform depth H. [2] Because the Coriolis parameter (f = 2Ω sin(θ) where Ω is the angular velocity of the earth, 7.2921 × 10 −5 rad/s, and θ is latitude) vanishes at 0 degrees latitude (equator), the “equatorial beta plane” approximation must be made.
Brewer–Dobson circulation is driven by planetary scale atmospheric waves, namely Rossby waves, with results in westward drag and therefore poleward pumping action to conserve angular momentum. [ 1 ]
The Rossby parameter (or simply beta ) is a number used in geophysics and meteorology which arises due to the meridional variation of the Coriolis force caused by the spherical shape of the Earth. It is important in the generation of Rossby waves .