Surface wind, subcloud humidity and the stability of the tropical climate

The dominant balance in the tropical ocean surface energy budget is between radiative beating and evaporative cooling. It has been proposed recently t hat a positive correlation between surface wind and ocean temperature could enhance the stabilising effect of evaporation. The issue is studied here u sing a single-column radiative-convective model of the tropical atmosphere. It is found that the proposed coupling of surface wind to temperature will indeed always increase the stability of the system. but the extent to whic h it does so depends in an essential way on the strength of the upper tropo spheric water vapour feedback.