Abstract
Abstract
In solving atmospheric dynamics problems, the influence of the gravity field inhomogeneities (GFI) is neglected. The traditional basis for this is that the amplitude of gravity variations even in highly anomalous regions do not exceed 10−3 ms−2 in order of magnitude, i.e. 4 orders of magnitude less than average gravity. But in the presence of gravity anomalies, inhomogeneous forces of the same order act in the directions tangent to the mean Earth ellipsoid. The atmosphere dynamics is very sensitive to the forces of such directions. In highly anomalous regions, they are comparable with the main horizontal forces acting in the atmosphere, in particular with the forces of the pressure gradient and Coriolis forces. Therefore, it seems appropriate to analyze the possible effect of spatial variations of gravity on the dynamics of the atmosphere, primarily for mesoscale atmospheric disturbances. In a number of the authors’ previous works, theoretical studies of the possible effect of GFI on the atmosphere dynamics are carried out. This report contains some new relevant findings. A three-dimensional analytical model of geostrophic wind disturbances under the influence of GFI is developed. An analogy of atmospheric disturbances caused by thermal inhomogeneities of the underlying surface and GFI is shown. Attention is drawn to the possibility of “accumulation” of atmospheric effects associated with the gravitational field inhomogeneities.