Kinetic energy cascade in the atmosphere and its connection to circulation patterns*

Atmospheric circulation is characterized by a nonlinear dynamic over a broad range of spatial and temporal scales, spanning several orders of magnitude, presenting a complex system with non-linear kinetic energy (KE) flux across scales. Analyzing the KE cascades across different scales is central to understanding and predicting atmospheric evolution. These KE cascades influence atmospheric circulation patterns and the development of synoptic-scale weather systems. This work employs a coarse graining (CG) scale-analysis framework to compute the KE cascades from ERA5 reanalysis data, derived from satellite and high-resolution model observations. The framework enables us to generate global geographic maps of the KE cascade across all resolved scales and pressure levels. Our analysis reveals a relationship between the KE cascade and distinct atmospheric circulation patterns.