Signature of a zonally symmetric semidiurnal tide during major sudden stratospheric warmings and plausible mechanisms: a case study

Abstract

Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) is a winter phenomenon initiated primarily by the enhanced stationary planetary waves (SPWs), characterized by an increase in polar stratospheric temperature by a few tens of kelvin for a few days. Wave-wave non-linear interaction can produce secondary waves, with sum and difference frequencies of the primary wave frequencies. The sun-synchronous semidiurnal tide is a major component at mid and high latitude middle atmosphere, which non-linearly interacts with the dominant SPW in the stratosphere to produce the zonally symmetric semidiurnal tide component (S0), as observed during two boreal SSWs. The zonally symmetric distribution of ozone has also potential to excite the S0 component by absorption of solar ultraviolet radiation as evident during a rare Austral SSW. Overall, the present study sheds light on the dominant generation mechanisms involved in the S0 enhancement during the SSW.