BAROTROPIC AND BAROCLINIC ENSTROPHY EQUATIONS WITH THEIR APPLICATIONS TO A BLOCKING CIRCULATION

After the manner for studying atmospheric kinetic energy,concepts of atmospheric enstrophy(ζ~2/2)_m and barotropic and baroclinic enstrophy (ζ_m~2/2,ζ_s~2/2) are developed with their relationsinvestigated,whereupon are established,separately,equations for the 1000- 100 hPa extent-averaged ζ_m~2/2 and ζ_s~2/2 over a limited area and on a local basis.Study shows that controlling theirchanges are the following factors:the terms of their fluxes (viz.,divergences).β effect,theirmutual conversions,production and dissipation.Analysis is undertaken of these terms-dependentphysical mechanisms for the variations in barotropic and baroclinic enstrophy and by means of theequations,calculation is conducted of the terms during the development of an Okhotsk blockingcirculation,indicating that the total,harotropic and haroclinic enstrophies experience noticeablevariations,from which we see that the latter two factors can really characterize the development asa whole,thus revealing the mechanisms at different stages of the circulation history.