The Linear Response Function of an Idealized Atmosphere. Part II: Implications for the Practical Use of the Fluctuation–Dissipation Theorem and the Role of Operator’s Nonnormality

Abstract

Abstract A linear response function (LRF) relates the mean response of a nonlinear system to weak external forcings and vice versa. Even for simple models of the general circulation, such as the dry dynamical core, the LRF cannot be calculated from first principles owing to the lack of a complete theory for eddy–mean flow feedbacks. According to the fluctuation–dissipation theorem (FDT), the LRF can be calculated using only the covariance and lag-covariance matrices of the unforced system. However, efforts in calculating the LRFs for GCMs using FDT have produced mixed results, and the reason(s) behind the poor performance of the FDT remain(s) unclear. In Part I of this study, the LRF of an idealized GCM, the dry dynamical core with Held–Suarez physics, is accurately calculated using Green’s functions. In this paper (Part II), the LRF of the same model is computed using FDT, which is found to perform poorly for some of the test cases. The accurate LRF of Part I is used with a linear stochastic equation to show that dimension reduction by projecting the data onto the leading EOFs, which is commonly used for FDT, can alone be a significant source of error. Simplified equations and examples of 2 × 2 matrices are then used to demonstrate that this error arises because of the nonnormality of the operator. These results suggest that errors caused by dimension reduction are a major, if not the main, contributor to the poor performance of the LRF calculated using FDT and that further investigations of dimension-reduction strategies with a focus on nonnormality are needed.