The semi-geostrophic equations are used widely in the modelling of large-scale atmospheric flows. In this note, we prove the global existence of weak solutions of the incompressible semi-geostrophic equations, in geostrophic coordinates, in a three-dimensional domain with a free upper boundary. The proof, based on an energy minimisation argument originally inspired by Cullens Stability Principle, uses optimal transport results as well as the analysis of Hamiltonian ODEs in spaces of probability measures as studied by Ambrosio and Gangbo. We also give a general formulation of Cullens Stability Principle in a rigorous mathematical framework.
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