Theory
The QBO was discovered in the 1950s, but its cause remained unclear for some time. Rawinsonde soundings showed that its phase was not related to the annual cycle, as is the case for all other stratospheric circulation patterns. In the 1970s it was recognized by Richard Lindzen and James Holton that the periodic wind reversal was driven by atmospheric waves emanating from the tropical troposphere that travel upwards and are dissipated in the stratosphere by radiative cooling. The precise nature of the waves responsible for this effect was heavily debated; in recent years, however, gravity waves have come to be seen as a major contributor.
Read more about this topic: Quasi-biennial Oscillation
Famous quotes containing the word theory:
“Everything to which we concede existence is a posit from the standpoint of a description of the theory-building process, and simultaneously real from the standpoint of the theory that is being built. Nor let us look down on the standpoint of the theory as make-believe; for we can never do better than occupy the standpoint of some theory or other, the best we can muster at the time.”
—Willard Van Orman Quine (b. 1908)
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—Naomi Weisstein (b. 1939)
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—Rheta Childe Dorr (1866–1948)