Ozone Hole Meteorology: Heat Flux
Variations of temperature are strongly affected by weather systems in the troposphere. Very large-scale weather systems or waves can move or propagate upward into the stratosphere. The upward propagation of these weather systems warms the polar region. We measure this upward flow of wave energy with the eddy heat flux. The eddy heat flux is the product of north-south (meridional) wind departures and temperature departures from their respective zonal-mean values. There is a strong anticorrelation between stratospheric temperature and the 45-day average of the eddy heat flux lagged prior to the temperature. A more negative value of eddy heat flux indicates that wave systems are moving into the stratosphere and are warming the polar region.
- Ozone
- Temperature
- Wind
- Potential Vorticity
- Heat Flux
Comparison to all years
The following figures show the daily progression through the ozone hole season, comparing the current year to the climatology of all other years.
The average of 45°–75°S eddy heat flux at
100 hPa for the 45-day period prior to the date indicated.
- 45-Day Total Eddy Heat Flux …
-
45-Day Wave 1–3 Eddy Heat Flux …
The average of 45°–75°S waves
1–3 eddy heat flux at 100 hPa for the 45-day
period prior to the date indicated. The lower wave
numbers tend to dominate the total eddy heat flux and
generally show a better relationship with temperature.
-
Total Eddy Heat Flux …
The average of 45°–75°S eddy heat flux at
100 hPa.
-
Wave 1–3 Eddy Heat Flux …
The average of 45°–75°S waves
1–3 eddy heat flux at 100 hPa. The lower wave
numbers tend to dominate the total eddy heat flux and
generally show a better relationship with temperature.
-- click on a link for a PDF figure --
Detailed descriptions of the plots are available. The Code 613.3 web page has many other meteorological statistics.