GLOBAL TROPICAL CYCLOGENESIS AS A GEOPHYSICAL SYSTEM SLIGHTLY OUT OF EQUILIBRIUM

Based on tile results of a correlation analysis of a time series of me asurements of the intensity of global tropical cyclogenesis (derived f rom space observations), it is shown that the processes of global cycl ogenesis in the ocean-atmosphere system can be described as relaxation oscillations of a kinetic and diffusive (Langevin) type in a medium w hich is slightly out of equilibrium. Stages in the kinetic and diffusi ve relaxation with the transition to a flicker-noise regime are identi fied.