The formation of coherent structures in the context of blocking

It is shown that the interaction of long. weakly nonlinear, quasigeostrophi c baroclinic waves can be described by a pair of linearly coupled Korteweg- de Vries equations. Baroclinic energy conversion is investigated as the int eraction of interacting upper- and lower-layer structures, which are repres ented by solitary waves. This system exhibits a rich dynamics that is sugge stive of atmospheric blocking features, such as stable stationary solutions , transient quasi-steady-state solutions, multiple equilibria, and baroclin ic instability. This system is investigated both analytically, using techni ques from asymptotic perturbation theory, and through numerical simulations .