AbstractThe motion of an initially symmetric vortex in a spatially‐varying large‐scale flow on a beta plane is investigated using a nondivergent, barotropic numerical model. The calculations extend those carried out for the case of zero basic flow in Part I. The large‐scale flows are provided by meridionally‐varying zonal flows, or single‐mode, stationary, finite‐amplitude planetary waves in a channel. Interest is focused on the evolution of vortex asymmetries and their role in determining vortex motion relative to the basic large‐scale flow.As in Part I, the calculations are used to assess averaging procedures for computing the environmental wind field of a tropical cyclone from observed wind data. It is shown that averaging over an annular region centred on the vortex is, in principle, more accurate when there is a basic flow, in comparison with the case of ze