Aplicação de uma teoria termodinâmica no estudo de um vórtice ciclônico de altos níveis sobre o Nordeste do Brasil.

Abstract

In this work we study an upper-tropospheric cyclonic vortex (UTCV) that occurred on Northeast Brazil. We used the heat-engine theory to analyze one of the mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of these systems. The heat-engine theory based on the second law of thermodynamics was used to estimate the pressure drop between two points located at the vortex´s center and periphery respectively. The Brazilian developments on the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (BRAMS) model simulated quite well an UTVC that occurred between 10 and 21 January 2011. We analyzed the time period between 16 and 19 January for the vortex presented a better configuration during these days. Through the analyze of some meteorological variables, namely vertical velocity, precipitation and equivalent potential temperature, we could see that the vortex is intense at the beginning, then weakens, and intensifies again at the end of the analyzed period. We concluded that the heat-engine theory is a powerful tool for studying UTVC since its results show good agreement with the model results.