Mean Cloudiness over the Global Tropics from Satellite Observations.

Charts of mean monthly cloudiness over the global tropics, based on satellite observations during the period February 1965 through July 1973, are provided. Estimates of cloud amounts are based on daily nephanalyses for the eight-year period, assessing cloud cover in 2.5 degree latitude-longitude intervals. Time-latitude sections are included for selected representative longitudes, to aid in summarizing seasonal variations of mean cloudiness. Mean cloudiness is particularly useful in describing the seasonal variability of cloud systems. Both mesoscale and synoptic features of clear and cloudy areas are revealed by these analyses, including windward-leeward cloudiness changes resulting from island barrier effects. This realistic assessment of cloud amount variability in the tropics will be useful in regional climatologies and in studies involving air-sea interaction. Keywords include: Global tropical cloudiness; Mean cloudiness; Cloud distribution; Satellite meteorology, Nephanalysis; Tropics.