Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2025 / iii / Paper 333 / 3 / i / Solution

The quasi-geostrophic approximation requires small Rossby number, nearly horizontal geostrophic balance, hydrostatic vertical balance, small interface or density displacements, stable background stratification, and horizontal scales much larger than the vertical scale. The Boussinesq approximation and a beta plane are used, ageostrophic motion enters only at the order needed to evolve potential vorticity, and here the buoyancy frequency $N$ is constant. Under these assumptions the materially conserved three-dimensional quasi-geostrophic potential vorticity is