Atmosphere Dynamics On Earth
See also: Undular boreIn the Earth's atmosphere, gravity waves are a mechanism for the transfer of momentum from the troposphere to the stratosphere. Gravity waves are generated in the troposphere by frontal systems or by airflow over mountains. At first, waves propagate through the atmosphere without appreciable change in mean velocity. But as the waves reach more rarefied air at higher altitudes, their amplitude increases, and nonlinear effects cause the waves to break, transferring their momentum to the mean flow.
This process plays a key role in controlling the dynamics of the middle atmosphere.
The clouds in gravity waves can look like altostratus undulatus clouds, and are sometimes confused with them, but the formation mechanism is different.
Read more about this topic: Gravity Wave
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