Abstract. The quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) dominates the variability of the equatorial stratosphere (---16-50 km) and is easily seen as downward propagating easterly and westerly wind regimes, with a variable period averaging approximately 28 months. From a fluid dynamical perspective, the QBO is a fascinating example of a coherent, oscillating mean flow that is driven by propagating waves with periods unrelated to that of the resulting oscillation. Although the QBO is a tropical phenomenon, it affects the stratospheric flow from pole to pole by modulating the effects of extratropical waves. Indeed, study of the QBO is inseparable from the study of atmospheric wave motions that drive it and are modulated by it. The QBO affects variability in the mesosphere near 85 km by selectively filtering waves that propagate upward through the equatorial stratosphere, and may also affect the strength of Atlantic hurricanes.

Recent observational and theoretical studies of the global properties of small-scale atmospheric gravity waves have highlighted the global effects of these waves on the circulation from the surface to the middle atmosphere. The effects of gravity waves on the large-scale circulation have long been treated via parametrizations in both climate and weather-forecasting applications. In these parametrizations, key parameters describe the global distributions of gravity-wave momentum flux, wavelengths and frequencies. Until recently, global observations could not define the required parameters because the waves are small in scale and intermittent in occurrence. Recent satellite and other global datasets with improved resolution, along with innovative analysis methods, are now providing constraints for the parametrizations that can improve the treatment of these waves in climate-prediction models. Research using very-highresolution global models has also recently demonstrated the capability to resolve gravity waves and their circulation effects, and when tested against observations these models show some very realistic properties. Here we review recent studies on gravitywave effects in stratosphere-resolving climate models, recent observations and analysis methods that reveal global patterns in gravity-wave momentum fluxes and results of very-high-resolution model studies, and we outline some future research requirements to improve the treatment of these waves in climate simulations.

International audienceFor the first time, a formal comparison is made between gravity wave momentum fluxes in models and those derived from observations. Although gravity waves occur over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales, the focus of this paper is on scales that are being parameterized in present climate models, sub-1000-km scales. Only observational methods that permit derivation of gravity wave momentum fluxes over large geographical areas are discussed, and these are from satellite temperature measurements, constant-density long-duration balloons, and high-vertical-resolution radiosonde data. The models discussed include two high-resolution models in which gravity waves are explicitly modeled, Kanto and the Community Atmosphere Model, version 5 (CAM5), and three climate models containing gravity wave parameterizations, MAECHAM5, Hadley Centre Global Environmental Model 3 (HadGEM3), and the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) model. Measurements generally show similar flux magnitudes as in models, except that the fluxes derived from satellite measurements fall off more rapidly with height. This is likely due to limitations on the observable range of wavelengths, although other factors may contribute. When one accounts for this more rapid fall off, the geographical distribution of the fluxes from observations and models compare reasonably well, except for certain features that depend on the specification of the nonorographic gravity wave source functions in the climate models. For instance, both the observed fluxes and those in the high-resolution models are very small at summer high latitudes, but this is not the case for some of the climate models. This comparison between gravity wave fluxes from climate models, high-resolution models, and fluxes derived from observations indicates that such efforts offer a promising path toward improving specifications of gravity wave sources in climate models

Gravity wave characteristics in the middle- to high-latitude Southern Hemisphere are analyzed using simulation data over 3 yr from a high-resolution middle-atmosphere general circulation model without using any gravity wave parameterizations. Gravity waves have large amplitudes in winter and are mainly distributed in the region surrounding the polar vortex in the middle and upper stratosphere, while the gravity wave energy is generally weak in summer. The wave energy distribution in winter is not zonally uniform, but it is large leeward of the southern Andes and Antarctic Peninsula. Linear theory in the three-dimensional framework indicates that orographic gravity waves are advected leeward significantly by the mean wind component perpendicular to the wavenumber vector. Results of ray-tracing and cross-correlation analyses are consistent with this theoretical expectation. The leeward energy propagation extends to several thousand kilometers, which explains part of the gravity wave distribution around the polar vortex in winter. This result indicates that orographic gravity waves can affect the mean winds at horizontal locations that are far distant from the source mountains. Another interesting feature is a significant downward energy flux in winter, which is observed in the lower stratosphere to the south of the southern Andes. The frequency of the downward energy flux is positively correlated with the gravity wave energy over the southern Andes. Partial reflection from a rapid increase in static stability around 10 hPa and/or gravity wave generation through nonlinear processes are possible mechanisms to explain the downward energy flux.

[1] Using hourly data from a three-year simulation based on a gravity-wave resolving general circulation model, we have first inferred a global view of gravity wave sources and propagation affecting significantly the momentum balance in the mesosphere. The meridional cross section of momentum fluxes suggests that there are a few dominant propagation paths originating from the subtropics in summer and the middle to high latitudes in winter. These gravity waves are focused into the mesospheric jets in their respective seasons, acting effectively to decelerate the jets. The difference in the source latitudes likely contributes to the hemispheric asymmetries of the jets. The horizontal distribution of the momentum fluxes indicates that the dominant sources are steep mountains and tropospheric westerly jets in winter and vigorous monsoon convection in summer. The monsoon regions are the most important window to the middle atmosphere in summer because of the easterlies associated with the monsoon circulation.

Abstract. Gravity waves in the lower polar stratosphere are examined using operational radiosonde observations gathered from 33 stations over a period of 10 years. Both the potential and kinetic energies of the gravity waves vary annually and reach maxima in winter in the Arctic and in spring in the Antarctic. In the Antarctic spring a region of large gravity wave energy propagates downward following the movement of a zone of high static stability associated with Southern Hemispheric warming. Moreover, the enhanced energy region and the high stability zone coincide in the horizontal plane and move gradually from 135øE, 50øS to 45øW, 70øS over the South Pole. The vertical and horizontal directions of wave propagation are examined using hodograph analysis in the vertical. Most gravity waves transfer energy upward in the Arctic, while the percentage of downward energy propagation is relatively high in winter and spring in the Antarctic. Horizontally, gravity waves propagate westward relative to the mean wind in the Arctic, while in the Antarctic the dominant direction varies from station to station. The correlation between gravity wave energy in the lower stratosphere and the mean wind is also examined. In the Arctic, gravity wave energy is highly correlated with the surface wind, though in the Antarctic it correlates with the stratospheric wind. These results suggest that gravity waves observed in the Arctic are forced by topography, whereas in Antarctica some sources may exist in the stratosphere. One such source candidate is likely to be the polar night jet.

[1] A high-resolution middle atmosphere general circulation model (GCM) developed for studying small-scale atmospheric processes is presented, and the general features of the model are discussed. The GCM has T213 spectral horizontal resolution and 256 vertical levels extending from the surface to a height of 85 km with a uniform vertical spacing of 300 m. Gravity waves (GWs) are spontaneously generated by convection, topography, instability, and adjustment processes in the model, and the GCM reproduces realistic general circulation in the extratropical stratosphere and mesosphere. The oscillations similar to the stratopause semiannual oscillation and the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) in the equatorial lower stratosphere are also spontaneously generated in the GCM, although the period of the QBO-like oscillation is short (15 months). The relative roles of planetary waves, large-scale GWs, and small-scale GWs in maintenance of the meridional structures of the zonal wind jets in the middle atmosphere are evaluated by calculating Eliassen-Palm diagnostics separately for each of these three groups of waves. Small-scale GWs are found to cause deceleration of the wintertime polar night jet and the summertime easterly jet in the mesosphere, while extratropical planetary waves primarily cause deceleration of the polar night jet below a height of approximately 60 km. The meridional distribution and propagation of small-scale GWs are shown to affect the shape of the upper part of mesospheric jets. The phase structures of orographic GWs over the South Andes and GWs emitted from the tropospheric jet stream are discussed as examples of realistic GWs reproduced by the T213L256 GCM.

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