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The eddy diffusivity and the temperature of the lower layers of the atmosphere
Author(s) -
Cowling T. G.,
White A.,
Chapman S.
Publication year - 1941
Publication title -
quarterly journal of the royal meteorological society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.744
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1477-870X
pISSN - 0035-9009
DOI - 10.1002/qj.49706729106
Subject(s) - eddy diffusion , thermal diffusivity , atmosphere (unit) , convection , atmospheric sciences , environmental science , lead (geology) , mechanics , variation (astronomy) , diurnal temperature variation , meteorology , climatology , geology , thermodynamics , turbulence , physics , astrophysics , geomorphology
Methods of calculating the eddy diffusivity κ are discussed. It is shown that methods which assume that κ can be regarded as independent of the height, even through a shallow layer, lead to erroneous results: in consequence the frequent use in the literature of the approximate equation of transfer of heat κθ || =θ is to be deplored. It is also shown that there is a large diurnal variation of κ at any level, and that neglect of this may also lead to incorrect and discordant results. Using the values obtained for κ, it is shown that certain features of the temperature variation cannot be explained by convection alone, and it is suggested that they may possibly be due to radiation.