Oceanic Regulation of the Atmospheric Walker Circulation
نویسنده
چکیده
A coupled theory is proposed to account for the magnitude of the Walker circulation in the tropical Pacific. It is suggested that the Pacific Walker circulation is at a saturation state, at which the zonal sea surface temperature difference is bounded by about a quarter of the latitudinal difference of the radiative–convective equilibrium sea surface temperature. Corresponding author address: Z. Liu, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, 1225 W. Dayton St., Madison, WI 53706-1695. E-mail: [email protected] In final form 19 August 1996. ©1997 American Meteorological Society
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