Brewer-Dobson circulation (Geography)
From The Encyclopedia of Earth
Brewer-Dobson circulation
March 30, 2010, 12:00 am
October 28, 2011, 12:15 pm
| This article is written at a definitional level only. Authors wishing to improve this entry are inivited to expand the present treatment, which additions will be peer reviewed prior to publication of any expansion. |
Schematic representation of the Brewer-Dobson circulation and Middle Atmosphere Transport. Tropospheric air masses enter the stratosphere via the tropical tropopause, from where they are distributed via different pathways in the stratosphere. Trace gas measurements can help in identifying different pathways and their relative importance. Source: Frankfurt University Brewer-Dobson circulation is the meridional atmospheric circulation that transports air poleward and downward from the tropical middle atmosphere. Air is transferred between the equator and poles by this circulation on a time scale of months, indicative of the strong control by the Coriolis force that deflects the air stream zonally and inhibits meridional motions.
Further Reading:
- Physical Oceanography Index
- M.Salby. The atmosphere. In K.E. Trenberth, editor, Climate System Modeling, pages 53-115. Cambridge Univ. Press, 1992.
- Atmospheric Transport, Frankfurt University (accessed March 30, 2010)
