Migrations and dynamics of the intertropical convergence zone.

Schneider T; Bischoff T; Haug GH

doi:10.1038/nature13636

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Journal article

Migrations and dynamics of the intertropical convergence zone.

Schneider T 1] California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA [2] Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zürich, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland.
Bischoff T 1] California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA [2] Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zürich, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland.
Haug GH Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zürich, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland.

2014-09-05

Published in:

Nature. - 2014

English Rainfall on Earth is most intense in the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), a narrow belt of clouds centred on average around six degrees north of the Equator. The mean position of the ITCZ north of the Equator arises primarily because the Atlantic Ocean transports energy northward across the Equator, rendering the Northern Hemisphere warmer than the Southern Hemisphere. On seasonal and longer timescales, the ITCZ migrates, typically towards a warming hemisphere but with exceptions, such as during El Niño events. An emerging framework links the ITCZ to the atmospheric energy balance and may account for ITCZ variations on timescales from years to geological epochs.

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