Seasonal variations in the vertical structure of water vapor optical depth in the lower troposphere over a tropical station

Spatio-temporal variations of water vapor optical depth in the lower troposphere (450-3850 m) over Punt (18o32’N, 73o51’E, 559 m Above Mean Sea Level), India have been studied over a period of five years. The mean ver-tical structure showed that the moisture content is greatest at the lowest level and decreases with increasing altitude, except in the south-west monsoon season (June to September) where an increase upto 950 m has been found. Optical depths are maximum in the monsoon season. The increase from pre-monsoon (March-May) to monsoon season in moisture content on an average is by about 58% in the above altitude range. The temporal variations in surface Rela-tive Humidity and optical depth at 450 m show positive correlation. The amplitude of seasonal oscillation is the larg-est at 1465 m altitude. The time-height cross-sections of water vapor optical depths in the lower troposphere showed a contrast between years of good and bad monsoon.     

Large signals of climatic variation over the ocean in the asian monsoon region

The aim of this paper is to identify and delineate large signals of climatic variation in the Asian monsoon region and try to understand the nature of transformation from one climate regime to another.It is found that the summer monsoon over the Indian and western Pacific oceans stows distinct climatic regimes with changes occurring in the years around 1875, 1900, 1940 and 1960. The change of about 1900 is the largest one, which occurs in step with the variation of global oceanic climate pointed out by Fletcher, et al. (1982).The main characteristics of the transformation from one regime to another is an alternation of meridio-nality of monsoon current. The transformation occurs most strongly in the western Pacific convergence zone, where monsoon has strong interaction with the trade wind systems.The variability of monsoon rainfall over India and East China also exhibits some large signals which are synchronous with those of wind field over the ocean: the monsoon rainfall increases (decreases) during the “meridional monsoon period” (zonal monsoon period) over the ocean.It should be noted that the apparent decreasing of plum rains in East China since 1958 which is well known in China would be linked mainly with the sudden increasing of U-component of SW monsoon over the South China Sea.Finally a kind of seesaw between Indian monsoon and East China monsoon with somewhat time-lag is discussed.     

Weakening of Indian summer monsoon in recent decades

The analysis of 43 years of NCEP-NCAR reanalysis data and station observations reveals the connections between tropospheric temperature variations and the weakening of the Indian summer monsoon circulation. The Indian summer monsoon variation is strongly linked to tropospheric temperature over East Asia, showing significant positive correlations of mean tropospheric temperature with all-Indian summer rainfall and the monsoon circulation intensity. The result shows that Indian summer monsoon circulation underwent two weakening processes in recent decades. The first occurred in circa the mid-1960s, and the other occurred in circa the late 1970s. The finding indicates that the mean tropospheric temperature may play a crucial role in the weakening of the Indian summer monsoon intensity via changing land-sea thermal contrast. The role of the tropospheric temperature contrast between East Asia and the tropical area from the eastern Indian Ocean to the tropical western Pacific is to weaken the Indian summer monsoon circulation.     

ANOMALOUS VARIATIONS OF GUANGDONG PRECIPITATION IN SUMMER IN RELATION TO MONSOON

The relationship between the variation of precipitation in Guangdong Province is investigated using the correlation analysis and composite comparison methods in conjunction with precipitation data from 36 surface weather stations in the province and reanalyzed 850 hPa data from NCEP, U.S.A. A significant positive correlation is found between the variation of precipitation in summer there and the intensity of the southwesterly over the South China Sea though without being so inconclusive that a strong southwesterly over the sea is accompanied by more rain in Guangdong. For the front-associated flood season in April-June, the former is a carrier of rainwater for Guangdong but with insignificant linkage with the intensity of the southwest monsoon. There is even such a situation in which the precipitation gets stronger though with a weakened southwest monsoon from the tropics in May-June, which is mainly attributable to the increase of monsoon from the subtropics. For the typhoon-associated flood season in July-September, the Guangdong precipitation increases as the southwest monsoon strengthens over the central and northern South China Sea and the subtropical monsoon reduces its effects on the province.     

Seasonal Variations in the Vertical Structure of Water Vapor Optical Depth in the Lower Troposphere over a Tropical Station

Spatio-temporal variations of water vapor optical depth in the lower troposphere (450-3850 m) over Pune (18o32’N, 73o51’E, 559 m Above Mean Sea Level), India have been studied over a period of five years. The mean ver-tical structure showed that the moisture content is greatest at the lowest level and decreases with increasing altitude, except in the south-west monsoon season (June to September) when an increase upto 950 m has been found. Optical depths are maximum in the monsoon season. The increase from pre-monsoon (March-May) to monsoon season in moisture content on an average is by about 58% in the above altitude range. The temporal variations in surface Rela-tive Humidity and optical depth at 450 m show positive correlation. The amplitude of seasonal oscillation is the larg-est at 1465 m altitude. The time-height cross-sections of water vapor optical depths in the lower troposphere showed a contrast between years of good and bad monsoon.     

THE ANALYSIS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE SUBSYSTEMS OF THE ASIAN SUMMER MONSOON

In this study, the relationship between the subsystems of Asian summer monsoon is analyzed using U.S. National Centers for Environmental Protection/National Center for Atmospheric Research reanalysis and Climate Prediction Center Merged Analysis of Precipitation monthly mean precipitation data. The results showed that there is significant correlation between the subsystems of Asian summer monsoon. The changes of intensity over the same period show that weak large-scale Asian monsoon, Southeast Asia monsoon and South Asian monsoon are associated with strong East Asian monsoon and decreasing rainfall in related areas. And when the large-scale Asian monsoon is strong, Southeast Asia and South Asia monsoons will be strong and precipitation will increase. While the Southeast Asia monsoon is strong, the South Asia monsoon is weak and the rainfall of South Asia is decreasing, and vice versa. The various subsystems are significantly correlated for all periods of intensity changes.     

THERMAL INFLUENCES OF LAND-SEA CONTRAST AND TOPOGRAPHY ON SUMMER MONSOON IN 1998

In this work, the SCSMEX data are used to diagnose and compare the local land-sea thermal conditions, with the focus of discussion on possible influences of thermal forcing of the western Pacific and the Tibetan Plateau on the onset and development of summer monsoon in 1998. Results show a close relationship between the distribution of the heat sources and the land-sea contrast. Due to the blocking effect of terrain, main maximum zones of the heat sources in areas with more evident north-south land-sea contrast are more obviously southward located than those exclusively with oceans. The surface heating is characterized with apparent seasonal variation and difference between land and sea. The relationship between the western Pacific and the onset of summer monsoon is reflected in the variations of the sea surface temperature (SST) and the latent heat. The influence mechanism of the Tibetan Plateau during the summer monsoon is different: it is dominated by sensible heating during the South China Sea monsoon and by condensed latent heating during the Indian monsoon.     

Characteristics of Zonal Propagation of Atmospheric Kinetic Energy at Equatorial Region in Asia

Based on the daily NCEP/NCAR reanalysis dataset from 1980 to 1997, the zonal propagations of 850 hPa kinetic energy (KE) and meridional wind (v) at equatorial region are examined respectively. Results show that the strongest center of KE in the tropical Asian monsoon region is located at 75°-90°E, with the secondary over the Somalia low-level jet channel, i.e., about 50°E. East to 90°E, disturbances of both KE and v observed are mainly coming from the western Pacific Ocean and propagating westward to the Bay of Bengal (BOB) passing through the South China Sea. But the propagation directions of both KE and v are rather disorderly between the BOB and the Somalia jet channel. Therefore, the East Asian summer monsoon and the Indian summer monsoon are different in the propagating features of the disturbances of KE and v. Above facts indicate that East Asian monsoon system exists undoubtedly even at the equatorial region, and quite distinct from the Indian monsoon system, it is mainly affected by the disturbances coming from the tropical western Pacific rather than from the Indian monsoon region. The boundary of the two monsoon systems is around 95°-100°E, which is more westward than the counterpart as proposed in earlier studies by 5-10 degrees in longitude.     

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN AUTUMN INDIAN OCEAN DIPOLE MODE AND THE STRENGTH OF SCS SUMMER MONSOON

Based on 1948 - 2004 monthly Reynolds Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and NCEP/NCAR atmospheric reanalysis data, the relationships between autumn Indian Ocean Dipole Mode (IODM) and the strength of South China Sea (SCS) Summer Monsoon are investigated through the EOF and smooth correlation methods. The results are as the following. (1) There are two dominant modes of autumn SSTA over the tropical Indian Ocean. They are the uniformly signed basin-wide mode (USBM) and Indian Ocean dipole mode (IODM), respectively. The SSTA associated with USBM are prevailing decadal to interdecadal variability characterized by a unanimous pattern, while the IODM mainly represents interannual variability of SSTA. (2) When positive (negative) IODM exists over the tropical Indian Ocean during the preceding fall, the SCS summer monsoon will be weak (strong). The negative correlation between the interannual variability of IODM and that of SCS summer monsoon is significant during the warm phase of long-term trend but insignificant during the cool phase. (3) When the SCS summer monsoon is strong (weak), the IODM will be in its positive (negative) phase during the following fall season. The positive correlation between the interannual variability of SCS summer monsoon and that of IODM is significant during both the warm and cool phase of the long-term trend, but insignificant during the transition between the two phases.     

Vertical Structure of Selected Turbulence Characteristics above an Urban Canopy

Summary In this paper the results of an urban measurement campaign are presented. The experiment took place from July 1995 to February 1996 in Basel, Switzerland. A total of more than 2000 undisturbed 30-minute runs of simultaneous measurements of the fluctuations of the wind vector u′, v′, w′ and the sonic temperature θ _s ′ at three different heights (z=36, 50 and 76 m a.g.l.) are analysed with respect to the integral statistics and their spectral behaviour. Estimates of the zero plane displacement height d calculated by the temperature variance method yield a value of 22 m for the two lower levels, which corresponds to 0.92 h (the mean height of the roughness elements). At all three measurement heights the dimensionless standard deviation σ _w /u _* is systematically smaller than the Monin-Obukhov similarity function for the inertial sublayer, however, deviations are smaller compared to other urban turbulence studies. The σ_θ/θ_* values follow the inertial sublayer prediction very close for the two lowest levels, while at the uppermost level significant deviations are observed. Profiles of normalized velocity and temperature variances show a clear dependence on stability. The profile of friction velocity u _* is similar to the profiles reported in other urban studies with a maximum around z/h=2.1. Spectral characteristics of the wind components in general show a clear dependence on stability and dimensionless measurement height z/h with a shift of the spectral peak to lower frequencies as thermal stability changes from stable to unstable conditions and as z/h decreases. Velocity spectra follow the −2/3 slope in the inertial subrange region and the ratios of spectral energy densities S _w (f)/S _u (f) approach the value of 4/3 required for local isotropy in the inertial subrange. Velocity spectra and spectral peaks fit best to the well established surface layer spectra from Kaimal et al. (1972) at the uppermost level at z/h=3.2. Received September 26, 1997 Revised February 15, 1998     

The Fallacy of Drifting Snow

A common parametrization over snow-covered surfaces that are undergoing saltation is that the aerodynamic roughness length for wind speed (z ₀) scales as au_*²/g{\alpha u_\ast^2/g}, where u _* is the friction velocity, g is the acceleration of gravity, and α is an empirical constant. Data analyses seem to support this scaling: many published plots of z ₀ measured over snow demonstrate proportionality to u_*²{u_\ast^2 }. In fact, I show similar plots here that are based on two large eddy-covariance datasets: one collected over snow-covered Arctic sea ice; another collected over snow-covered Antarctic sea ice. But in these and in most such plots from the literature, the independent variable, u _*, was used to compute z ₀ in the first place; the plots thus suffer from fictitious correlation that causes z ₀ to unavoidably increase with u _* without any intervening physics. For these two datasets, when I plot z ₀ against u _* derived from a bulk flux algorithm—and thus minimize the fictitious correlation—z ₀ is independent of u _* in the drifting snow region, u _* ≥ 0.30 ms⁻¹. I conclude that the relation z₀ = au_*²/g{z_0 = \alpha u_\ast^2/g} when snow is drifting is a fallacy fostered by analyses that suffer from fictitious correlation.     

Large-Eddy Simulation of Flow and Pollutant Transports in and Above Two-Dimensional Idealized Street Canyons

A large-eddy simulation (LES) model, using the one-equation subgrid-scale (SGS) parametrization, was developed to study the flow and pollutant transport in and above urban street canyons. Three identical two-dimensional (2D) street canyons of unity aspect ratio, each consisting of a ground-level area source of constant pollutant concentration, are evenly aligned in a cross-flow in the streamwise direction x. The flow falls into the skimming flow regime. A larger computational domain is adopted to accurately resolve the turbulence above roof level and its influence on the flow characteristics in the street canyons. The LES calculated statistics of wind and pollutant transports agree well with other field, laboratory and modelling results available in the literature. The maximum wind velocity standard deviations σ _i in the streamwise (σ _u ), spanwise (σ _v ) and vertical (σ _w ) directions are located near the roof-level windward corners. Moreover, a second σ _w peak is found at z ≈ 1.5h (h is the building height) over the street canyons. Normalizing σ _i by the local friction velocity u _*, it is found that σ _u /u _* ≈ 1.8, σ _v /u _* ≈ 1.3 and σ _w /u _* ≈ 1.25 exhibiting rather uniform values in the urban roughness sublayer. Quadrant analysis of the vertical momentum flux u′′w′′ shows that, while the inward and outward interactions are small, the sweeps and ejections dominate the momentum transport over the street canyons. In the x direction, the two-point correlations of velocity R _v,x and R _w,x drop to zero at a separation larger than h but R _u,x (= 0.2) persists even at a separation of half the domain size. Partitioning the convective transfer coefficient Ω _T of pollutant into its removal and re-entry components, an increasing pollutant re-entrainment from 26.3 to 43.3% in the x direction is revealed, suggesting the impact of background pollutant on the air quality in street canyons.     

Variability of surface roughness and turbulence intensities at a coastal site in India

Surface-layer features with different prevailing wind directions for two distinct seasons (Southwest Monsoon and Northeast Monsoon) on the west coast of India are studied using data obtained from tower-based sensors at a site located about 500 m from the coast. Only daytime runs have been used for the present analysis. The surface boundary-layer fluxes have been estimated using the eddy correlation method. The surface roughnessz ₀ obtained using the stability-corrected wind profiles (Paulson, 1970) has been found to be low for the Southwest monsson season. For the other season,z ₀ is relatively high. The drag coefficientC _D varies with height in the NE monsoon season but not in the season with lowz ₀. This aspect is reflected in the wind profiles for the two seasons and is discussed in detail. The scaling behaviour of friction velocityu _* and the turbulence intensity of longitudinal, lateral and vertical winds _u, _v and _w, respectively) are further examined to study their dependence on fetch. Our study shows that for the non-dimensional case, _u/u_* and _v/u_* do not show any surface roughness dependence in either season. On the other hand, for _w/u_* for the season with lowz ₀, the values are seen to agree well with that of Panofskyet al. (1977) for homogeneous terrain whereas for the other season with highz ₀, the results seem to conform more to the values observed by Smedman and Högström (1983) for coastal terrain. The results are discussed in the light of observations by other investigators.     

Some characteristics of the PBL over the ocean during the Indian summer monsoon

Data collected during the Indo-Soviet Monsoon-77 expedition are used to determine quadratic expressions for the universal constants A and B, as functions of the stability parameter, . A quadratic expression has also been obtained for u _*, in terms of the surface wind u _s. It is shown, from the mean values of q and _E , that the entire area covered by the expedition could be divided into four regions around the point 13° N, 78° E. The mean thermal characteristic of each region differs. It is shown that the northeastern quadrant is most favourable for the sustenance of a tropical storm once it has formed.     

Effect of the Entrainment Flux Ratio on the Relationship between Entrainment Rate and Convective Richardson Number

The parameterization of the dimensionless entrainment rate (w _e /w _*) versus the convective Richardson number (Ri _δθ ) is discussed in the framework of a first-order jump model (FOM). A theoretical estimation for the proportionality coefficient in this parameterization, namely, the total entrainment flux ratio, is derived. This states that the total entrainment flux ratio in FOM can be estimated as the ratio of the entrainment zone thickness to the mixed-layer depth, a relationship that is supported by earlier tank experiments, and suggesting that the total entrainment flux ratio should be treated as a variable. Analyses show that the variability of the total entrainment flux ratio is actually the effect of stratification in the free atmosphere on the entrainment process, which should be taken into account in the parameterization. Further examination of data from tank experiments and large-eddy simulations demonstrate that the different power laws for w _e /w _* versus Ri _δθ can be interpreted as the variability of the total entrainment flux ratio. These results indicate that the dimensionless entrainment rate depends not only on the convective Richardson number but also upon the total entrainment flux ratio.     

The turbulent structure of the internal boundary layer near the shore

The mean structure within the internal boundary layer (IBL) near the shore, which develop from the coast in the presence of a sea breeze, has been described in Part I of this study (Ogawa and Ohara, 1984). This paper presents the results of the similarity and energy budget analysis for the purpose of parameterization of the turbulent structure within the IBL. The analysis of the turbulent kinetic energy balance, turbulent intensities and spectra show that the wind is strongly affected by mechanical turbulence in comparison with the past results in a fully developed convective layer where thermal convection dominated. The standard deviations of the wind velocities normalized by the friction velocity u _* (surface-layer scaling parameter) are functions only of the normalized height z/Z _i within 160 m of the shoreline, where Z _i is the IBL. On the other hand, the standard deviations of temperature normalized by _* (mixing-layer scaling parameter) have less scatter with distance than those normalized by T _* (surface-layer scaling parameter). The data showed that both u _* (not a mixed-layer parameter), and Z _i (not a surface-layer parameter) are necessary to describe the turbulent characteristics of the IBL near the shore.Deceased March, 1984.     

A numerical model study of the structure and similarity scaling of the nocturnal boundary layer (NBL)

A one-dimensional numerical model based on the equations of mean motion and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), with Delage's (1974) mixing-length parameterization has been used to simulate the mean and turbulent structure of the evolving stably stratified nocturnal boundary layer (NBL). The model also includes a predictive equation for the surface temperature and longwave radiational cooling effects.In the absence of advective and gravity wave effects, it is found that the model-simulated structure, after a few hours of evolution, could be ordered fairly well by a similarity scaling (u _*0, _*0, L ₀, and h) based on surface fluxes and the NBL height. Simple expressions are suggested to describe the normalized profiles of momentum and heat fluxes, TKE, eddy-viscosity and energy dissipation. A good ordering of the same variables is also achieved by a local scaling (u _*0, _* and L) based on the height-dependent local fluxes. The normalized TKE, eddy viscosity and energy dissipation are unique functions of z/L and approach constant values as z/L , where L is the local Monin-Obukhov length. These constants are close to the values predicted for the surface layer as z/L , thus suggesting that the Monin-Obukhov similarity theory can be extended to the whole NBL, by using the local (height-dependent) scales in place of surface-layer scales. The observed NBL structure has been shown to follow local similarity (Nieuwstadt, 1984).     

Observational results on the influence of stability and wind-wave coupling on momentum transfer and turbulent fluctuations over ocean waves

Turbulence data obtained over ocean waves during the BOMEX experiment of 1969 are presented. Procedures in measurement and analyses are described which include adjustments for possible platform, R/V FLIP, motion. Momentum transfer is shown to have been influenced by both stability and wind-wave coupling. The wind-wave coupling influence is separated from the stability influence and is described in terms of a linear dependence of the deviation from the logarithmic profile on C/u _*, where C is the phase speed corresponding to the wave spectrum peak. As observed by others, a value of C/u _* near 25 is associated with minimal wind-wave coupling influence. For C/u _* greater than 25, momentum transfer is decreased relative to the neutral profile prediction. Expressions are also presented for the wind-wave coupling influence on relative intensities, _u /u _*, _u /u _* and _w/u _*. Values of the relative intensities approximate neutral overland values when the expressions are written such that the wave influence is zero near a C/u _* value of 25.     

The prediction of dust erosion by wind: An interactive model

We have devised a partial differential equation for the prediction of dust concentration in a thin layer near the ground. In this equation, erosion (detachment), transport, deposition and source are parameterised in terms of known quantities. The interaction between a wind prediction model in the boundary layer and this equation affects the evolution of the dust concentration at the top of the surface layer. Numerical integrations are carried out for various values of source strength, ambient wind and particle size. Comparison with available data shows that the results appear very reasonable and that the model should be subjected to further development and testing.Notation (x, y, z, t) space co-ordinates and time (cm,t) - u, v components of horizontal wind speed (cm s^–1) - u _g, v_g components of the geostrophic wind (cm s^–1) - V=(u²+v²)^1/2 (cm s^–1) - (û v)= 1/(h – k) _k ^h(u, v)dz(cm s^–1) - V _* friction velocity (cm s^–1) - z ₀ roughness length (cm) - k ₁ von Karman constant =0.4 - V _d deposition velocity (cm s^–1) - V _g gravitational settling velocity (cm s^–1) - h height of inversion (cm) - k height of surface layer (cm) - potential temperature (°K) - _gr potential temperature at ground (°K) - _K potential temperature at top of surface layer (°K) - P pressure (mb) - P ₀ sfc pressure (mb) - C _p/C_v - (t)= /z lapse rate of potential temperature (°K cm^–1) - A(z) variation of wind with height in transition layer - B(z) variation of wind with height in transition layer - Cd drag coefficient - C _HO transfer coefficient for sensible heat - C dust concentration (g m^–3) - C _K dust concentration at top of surface layer (g m^–3) - D(z) variation with height of dust concentration - u, v, w turbulent fluctuations of the three velocity components (cm s^–1) - A ₁ constant coefficient of proportionality for heat flux =0.2 - Ri Richardson number - g gravitational acceleration =980 cm s^–2 - Re Reynolds number = - D _s thickness of laminar sub-layer (cm) - v molecular kinematic viscosity of air - coefficient of proportionality in source term - dummy variable - t time step (sec) - n time index in numerical equations On sabbatical leave at University of Aberdeen, Department of Engineering, September 1989–February 1990.