TBB-REVEALED ANNUAL CYCLE FEATURES OF TROPICAL LFO^*

In the context of 1980-1992 JMA(Japan Meteorological Agency) GMS TBB gridded dataset,study is undertaken of annual cycle features of FFT-derived window power spectrum averaged over the record length,with localized space/time characteristics of low-frequency oscillation(LFO) in the tropical atmosphere investigated alongside possible causes.It turns out that the LFO takes on surprisingly noticeable annual cycle features marked by a wider variable range of the LFO periods over northern tropics than the southern counterpart and equatorial vicinity.In addition,on the whole,the signals are more intense in the Northern Hemisphere during summer/autumn and at equatorial/southern latitudes when northern winter/spring occur as well.Also,not all these features are identical for different segments at the same latitudes,displaying signatures on a local basis,and the spatial/temporal locality can be qualitatively interpreted in terms of nonlinear interaction between tropical waves,and modulation of diabatic heating on the LFO periods.