globalchange  > 气候减缓与适应
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo2405
论文题名:
Moist convection in hydrogen atmospheres and the frequency of Saturn's giant storms
作者: Li C.; Ingersoll A.P.
刊名: Nature Geoscience
ISSN: 17520894
出版年: 2015
卷: 8, 期:5
起始页码: 398
结束页码: 403
语种: 英语
Scopus关键词: atmospheric convection ; convection ; cooling ; frequency analysis ; global warming ; helium ; hydrogen ; Jupiter ; latitude ; lightning ; numerical model ; oscillation ; Saturn ; storm ; thermodynamics ; troposphere ; water vapor
英文摘要: A giant storm erupted on Saturn in December 2010. It produced intense lightning and cloud disturbances and encircled the planet in six months. Six giant storms - also called Great White Spots - have been observed on Saturn since 1876, recurring every 20 to 30 years and alternating between mid-latitudes and the equator. Here we use thermodynamic arguments to demonstrate that the quasi-periodic occurrence of Saturn's giant storms can be explained by a water-loading mechanism, in which moist convection is suppressed for decades owing to the relatively large molecular weight of water in a hydrogen-helium atmosphere. We find that the interaction between moist convection and radiative cooling in the troposphere above the cloud base produces an oscillation that leads to giant storm generation with a period of approximately 60 years for either mid-latitudes or the equator, provided the mixing ratio of water vapour in the troposphere exceeds 1.0%. We use a two-dimensional axisymmetric dynamic model and a top-cooling convective adjustment scheme to apply our conceptual model to Saturn. For a water vapour mixing ratio of 1.1%, simulated storms show a recurrence interval, ammonia depletion and tropospheric warming that are consistent with 2010 observations. Jupiter's atmosphere is more depleted in water than Saturn, which may explain its lack of planet-encircling storms. © 2015 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
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资源类型: 期刊论文
标识符: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/106220
Appears in Collections:气候减缓与适应
科学计划与规划

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作者单位: Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States

Recommended Citation:
Li C.,Ingersoll A.P.. Moist convection in hydrogen atmospheres and the frequency of Saturn's giant storms[J]. Nature Geoscience,2015-01-01,8(5)
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