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On the relationship between water vapor over the oceans and sea surface temperatureMonthly mean precipitable water data obtained from passive microwave radiometry were correlated with the National Meteorological Center (NMC) blended sea surface temperature data. It is shown that the monthly mean water vapor content of the atmosphere above the oceans can generally be prescribed from the sea surface temperature with a standard deviation of 0.36 g/sq cm. The form of the relationship between precipitable water and sea surface temperature in the range T (sub s) greater than 18 C also resembles that predicted from simple arguments based on the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship. The annual cycle of the globally integrated mass of Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) water vapor is shown to differ from analyses of other water vapor data in both phase and amplitude and these differences point to a significant influence of the continents on water vapor. Regional scale analyses of water vapor demonstrate that monthly averaged water vapor data, when contrasted with the bulk sea surface temperature relationship developed in this study, reflect various known characteristics of the time mean large-scale circulation over the oceans. A water vapor parameter is introduced to highlight the effects of large-scale motion on atmospheric water vapor. Based on the magnitude of this parameter, it is shown that the effects of large-scale flow on precipitable water vapor are regionally dependent, but for the most part, the influence of circulation is generally less than about + or - 20 percent of the seasonal mean.
Document ID
19900055325
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Stephens, Graeme L.
(Colorado State University Fort Collins, United States)
Date Acquired
August 14, 2013
Publication Date
June 1, 1990
Publication Information
Publication: Journal of Climate
Volume: 3
ISSN: 0894-8755
Subject Category
Oceanography
Accession Number
90A42380
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAG5-1122
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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