Atmosphere-ocean interaction in mid-latitude storms

Surface fluxes of heat, latent heat, and momentum, and entrainment fluxes and vertical motion at the top of the boundary layer were calculated for limited regions of several midlatitude ocean storms. Results were combined to describe distributions of boundary layer processes that are characteristic of such storms. Surface heat fluxes have important effects in the region west of cold or occluded fronts and are relatively unimportant within a band of similar to 200-km width, east of fronts. Entrainment in prefrontal regions is driven largely by vertical shear at the top of the boundary layer; in postfrontal regions, it is driven largely by surface heat flux. Boundary layers are well defined in regions > similar to 200 km east or west of fronts; but closer to fronts, boundary layers are not well defined because of the combined effects of entrainment, condensation, and vertical motion associated with the distribution of surface stress.