Open AccessA comparison of modern and historical methods for calculating Montgomery steamfunction
Author(s) -
Market Patrick S.,
Rochette Scott M.,
Lupo Anthony R.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
atmospheric science letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.951
H-Index - 45
ISSN - 1530-261X
DOI - 10.1002/asl2.414
Subject(s) - radiosonde , simple (philosophy) , global positioning system , meteorology , isentropic process , mathematics , climatology , computer science , calculus (dental) , geology , philosophy , geography , physics , epistemology , medicine , telecommunications , dentistry , thermodynamics
The suggestion has been made that the Montgomery streamfunction is now calculable for isentropic analysis purposes simply by applying the equation Ψ = gZ + c p T . Historically, this practice has been frowned upon, as measurements aloft did not have the accuracy requisite to allow such practice. Instead, an integral approach to calculating Ψ has been preferred to get workable values. Yet, advancements in the accuracy of radiosonde measurements have occurred, especially with global positioning system ( GPS )‐verified height data. Herein, we show that the values from the simple and integral methods of getting Ψ are very similar, and differ by only ∼0.2%. © 2012 Royal Meteorological Society