Notes and correspondence comments on 'sensitivity of tropical-cyclone models to the surface drag coefficient'

Some conclusions from a recent numerical modeling study regarding the potential intensity of tropical cyclones are shown to be attributable to a relatively short model integration time. Three-dimensional simulations that are long enough to allow for a quasi-steady state of maximum intensity show a result consistent with theory, i.e., that maximum intensity is inversely proportional to surface drag coefficient. An alternative hypothesis for how tropical cyclones can intensify in numerical models in the absence of surface drag is also offered.