On the Anelastic Approximation for a Compressible Atmosphere

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Abstract
The equations of motion for a compressible atmosphere under the influence of gravity are reexamined to determine the necessary conditions for which the anelastic approximation holds. These conditions are that (i) the buoyancy force has an O (1) effect in the vertical momentum equation, (ii) the characteristic Vertical displacement of an air parcel is comparable to the density scale height, and (iii) the horizontal variations of the thermodynamic state variables at any height are small compared to the static reference value at that height. It is shown that, as a consequence of these assumptions, two additional conditions hold for adiabatic flow. These ancillary conditions are that (iv) the spatial variation of the base-state entropy is small, and (v) the Lagrangian time scale of the motions must be lager than the inverse of the buoyancy frequency of the base state. It is argued that condition (iii) is more fundamental than (iv) and that a flow can be anelastic even if condition (iv) is violated pr... Abstract The equations of motion for a compressible atmosphere under the influence of gravity are reexamined to determine the necessary conditions for which the anelastic approximation holds. These conditions are that (i) the buoyancy force has an O (1) effect in the vertical momentum equation, (ii) the characteristic Vertical displacement of an air parcel is comparable to the density scale height, and (iii) the horizontal variations of the thermodynamic state variables at any height are small compared to the static reference value at that height. It is shown that, as a consequence of these assumptions, two additional conditions hold for adiabatic flow. These ancillary conditions are that (iv) the spatial variation of the base-state entropy is small, and (v) the Lagrangian time scale of the motions must be lager than the inverse of the buoyancy frequency of the base state. It is argued that condition (iii) is more fundamental than (iv) and that a flow can be anelastic even if condition (iv) is violated pr...

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