The partition of energy associated with tropical heat sources

Data sets derived from observations during the First GARP Global Experiment (FGGE) have permitted the study of the behavior of the tropical atmosphere to an extent not possible before. The present summary discusses characteristics of the tropical atmosphere which may be a result of tropical heating. It is shown that the meridional component of the divergent wind is of the same order of magnitude an he rotational meridional wind for the planetary tropical scales. Furthermore, the first and second internal modes dominate over most of the tropics, and it is shown that gravity and Kelvin codes are the main contributors to the total tropical divergence. Comparison with averaged station precipitation data and heating estimates obtained from Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheric Science (GLAS)/National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) show good correspondence between areas with maximum internal mode energy and regions with pronounced latent heat release.