The primitive hydrostatic equations for a rectangular homogeneous ocean with a free surface on a β-plane are integrated numerically for 60 days from an initial state of rest and undisturbed depth of 400 m. A zonal wind stress (maximum 2 dyn cm−2) and a lateral eddy viscosity (108 cm2 sec−1) are assumed. A series of transient Rossby waves of approximately 1000-2000 km in length form in the central and eastern basin, and undergo a well-marked life cycle of amplification and decay as they propagate westward at ∼1 m sec−1 relative to the zonal current. The northward boundary current in the west (∼1 m sec−1) and the counter-currents in the northwest (∼10 cm sec−1) may be identified as the first stationary members of a continuing series of waves, with subsequent transients showing characteristics of reflected Rossby waves and reaching progressively smaller maximum amplitudes. The standing wave pattern (wavelength ∼600 km) in the north-west is a characteristic nonlinear effect, and is associated with th... Abstract The primitive hydrostatic equations for a rectangular homogeneous ocean with a free surface on a β-plane are integrated numerically for 60 days from an initial state of rest and undisturbed depth of 400 m. A zonal wind stress (maximum 2 dyn cm−2) and a lateral eddy viscosity (108 cm2 sec−1) are assumed. A series of transient Rossby waves of approximately 1000-2000 km in length form in the central and eastern basin, and undergo a well-marked life cycle of amplification and decay as they propagate westward at ∼1 m sec−1 relative to the zonal current. The northward boundary current in the west (∼1 m sec−1) and the counter-currents in the northwest (∼10 cm sec−1) may be identified as the first stationary members of a continuing series of waves, with subsequent transients showing characteristics of reflected Rossby waves and reaching progressively smaller maximum amplitudes. The standing wave pattern (wavelength ∼600 km) in the north-west is a characteristic nonlinear effect, and is associated with th...