Advances in Numerical Prediction of the Atmospheric Circulation in the Extratropics

Abstract

The complexity and variability of atmospheric motion and their manifestations in all kinds of weather phenomena constitute a major scientific, technical and practical challenge to the meteorological community. The weather affects practically all meteorological aspects of human affairs and influences society both directly and indirectly. There is no doubt that the prediction of weather and the understanding of atmospheric processes are the primary tasks of the meteorological services. The prediction of the weather requires a fundamental understanding of the laws that govern the atmosphere and of the many feedback processes involving the atmosphere, oceans and the land surfaces. Predicting the weather is primarily an initial value . problem and hence the accuracy of weather prediction is directly related to the accuracy of observations and their distribution in time and space.