Journal of the Meteorological Society of Japan. Ser. II
Online ISSN : 2186-9057
Print ISSN : 0026-1165
ISSN-L : 0026-1165
On the Radiation Budget of the Troposphere over the Northern Hemisphere (III)
Zonal cross-section and energy consideration
A. Katayama
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1967 Volume 45 Issue 1 Pages 26-39

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Abstract

In part III, zonal cross-sections of the heating field by radiative processes are presentedfor each 10 degree latitude in January and July. The role of radiational processes in the energy cycle of the atmospheric general circulation is also discussed.
The zonal cross-section of the heating field by net radiative processes shows two significant maximum cooling layers : one is in the middle troposphere between 400 and 500mb and the other is in the lower troposphere. As for the middle tropospheric cooling layer, the height of this layer shows little change along the latitude circle, while it becomes lower from south to north and also from July to January. Its cooling rate is, in general, stronger over the ocean than over land. This maximum cooling layer is caused by the existence of middle clouds, nimbostratus or cumulonimbus. Another significant feature is that an isolated maximum cooling layer is found over high mountain regions.
The radiation budget of the troposphere seems to act to cause the destruction of the zonal available potential energy the year round. However, the magnitude of the energy destruction is considerably smaller than the generation of that energy by the condensation heating. This result clearly suggests that the direct contribution by the radiative processes to the atmospheric general circulation is not so significant but that the indirect contribution from the earth's surface is of prime importance.

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