Comments on ‘Spatial structure of ultra‐low frequency variability of the flow in a simple atmospheric circulation model’ by I. N. James and P. M. James (October 1992, 118, 1211–1233.)

James and James (1992) examine internally generated interannual variability in a multi‐level primitive‐equation model. The authors claim that the variability in the global mean relative angular velocity is associated with fluctuations in the mid‐latitude zonally‐averaged zonal winds. We question this relationship, and present results from an aqua‐planet GCM which indicate that, instead, the global mean relative angular velocity is primarily related to changes in the tropical zonally‐averaged zonal winds. Furthermore, we also question whether the ‘ultra‐low‐frequency variability’ examined by James and James is not simply just ‘climate noise’.