Introduction to Environmental Sciences

EES 102

Topic: Climate systems: Atmosphere

Reading material: Chapter 15, Cunningham
and Cunningham, Environmental Science, A
global concern

Instructor: Dr. Shubhi Agrawal, EES, IISERB | 4/2/2025 | L5

Atmospheric circulation
 Non-uniform heating of the surface
The heating at the surface of the earth is
not uniform but varies with the latitude
because of the variation of the incoming
radiation.

Over the same latitudinal belt, it varies

between land and ocean because the heat
capacity of the land is much smaller than
that of the ocean.

These factors result in differential heating

and pressure differences across different
regions.

Averaged annually, the equator receives

more energy from Sun as compared to the
poles.
3
 Major pressure belts and wind patterns
The result is zonally oriented pressure belts across
the Earth, for example-
equatorial low-pressure belt (PB),
subtropical high PBs,
subpolar low PBs, and
polar high PBs.
Low
Wind blows from high pressure regions to low pressure
pressure regions in the horizontal, causing
atmospheric circulations.

Coriolis force deflects winds towards right in the NH,

and towards left in the SH, forming prominent wind
patterns-
Trade winds or easterlies in the tropics,
Westerlies in the Mid-latitudes, and easterlies in the
Polar regions.
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 Vertical transport of energy
• In the vertical direction, over heated surfaces,
the warm air expands, becomes less dense, and
begins to rise. Then it cools and sinks, forming a
circulation pattern known as a convection cell.
• Incoming solar energy is also used to evaporate
water. Each gram of evaporating water absorbs
2260 J of energy as it transforms from liquid to
gas. This stored energy is known as latent heat.
• As rising air cools with altitude water vapor
condenses to liquid droplets (which we see as
clouds). As it condenses, each gram of water
releases 2260 J of heat energy.
Atmospheric circulation redistributes energy
• Circulation is more vigorous near the equator than at
higher latitudes because of the more intense heating
from the sun.
• Uneven heating and the rotational effect of Earth
results in three cell structure of the atmosphere in
each hemisphere.
• The equatorial convection cells (one north and one south
of the equator) is called Hadley cells.

• The mid-latitude and polar cells are Ferrel cells

and Polar cells, respectively.
Atmospheric circulation: three cell structure
Subtropical Jet stream is formed near
the descending branch of the Hadley
cell.

Polar Jet stream forms near the rising

branch of the Ferrel cell.

Where air rises in convection cell

currents, air pressure at the surface is
low.

Where air is sinking, or subsiding, air

pressure is high.

Atmospheric circulation carries a great

deal of heat and moisture from warm
humid places to colder, drier places.

The redistribution of heat and water

around the globe is essential to life on
earth.
 Region with intense convection- Intertropical
Convergence Zone
• ITCZ, is a zone that surrounds the Earth around the
equator.
• The trade winds (or easterlies - east-to-west prevailing
winds) of the northern and southern hemispheres come
together here, which leads to the development of
frequent thunderstorms and heavy rain.
• World’s Evergreen Forests are located here.
• Precipitation tends to be concentrated in space and time.
• Annual-mean precipitation at different points on Earth
ranges over two orders of magnitude, from a few tens of
centimeters per year in dry zones (e.g. ~100 mm/year in
Sahara) to several meters per year in the belts of
heaviest rainfall, such as the ITCZ (Mawsynram, 11,871
mm/year).
Regions with subsidence
The warm, rising air from the Intertropical
Convergence Zone (ITCZ) moves poleward and
cools as it reaches the upper troposphere.

By the time it reaches around 30° latitude, it has

lost much of its moisture and begins to sink due to
increased density.

The descending air creates a high-pressure zone,

known as the subtropical high.

This leads to clear skies, dry conditions, and

minimal cloud formation.

Major deserts, such as the Sahara, Atacama,

and Australian deserts, are located in these
regions (subtropics, ~30 N and S).
Atmospheric circulation redistributes energy
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZU76LOTa0s
Ocean currents redistribute heat
Ocean currents play a crucial role in heat transport by moving warm water from the equator
to the poles and cold water from the poles to the tropics.
This process helps regulate global climate and weather patterns. There are two main types
of ocean currents responsible for heat transport:

1. Surface Currents (Driven by Wind)

•Examples- Warm currents- the Gulf Stream, Kuroshio Current, carry warm water from the
equator toward higher latitudes.
•These currents are driven by global wind patterns and influenced by the Coriolis effect,
which causes them to curve.

2. Deep Ocean Currents (Thermohaline Circulation)

•Also called the "Global Conveyor Belt," this system is driven by differences in temperature
(thermo) and salinity (haline).
•Cold, salty water is denser and sinks at the poles (e.g., in the North Atlantic), moving deep
into the ocean.
•Warmer, less dense water rises in other areas, completing the circulation.
•This process moves heat slowly but has a major impact on global climate.
The Gulf Stream
The Gulf Stream carries warm salty Caribbean
water north to northern Europe.

This current is immense, some 800 times the

volume of the Amazon, the world’s largest
river.

The heat transported from the Gulf Stream

keeps Europe much warmer than it should be
for its latitude.

As the warm Gulf Stream passes Scandinavia

and swirls around Iceland, the water cools and
evaporates, becomes denser, and sinks
downward, creating a strong, deep, southward
current.
Thermohaline Circulation
Thermohaline Circulation has been disrupted in the
past, probably resulting in an ice age.
Could this happen again?

Freshwater from melting glaciers and increased

river discharge in the Arctic is now flowing into
the North Atlantic, precisely where the Gulf
Stream sinks to form the deep southward
current.

Scientific evidence already indicates that this

deep return flow has weakened by approximately
30%.

Even small shifts in the strength or trajectory of

the Gulf Stream could cause northern Europe to
experience a climate similar to Siberia—an ironic
outcome of polar warming!