Aerosol Type Identification Using PARASOL Multichannel Polarized Data

PARASOL （Polarization ＆ Anisotropy of Reflectances for Atmospheric Sciences coupled with Ob- servations from a Lidar） multi-channel and mul- ti-directional polarized data for different aerosol types were compared. The PARASOL polarized radiance data at 490 nm, 670 nm, and 865 nm increased with aerosol optical thickness （AOT） for fine-mode aerosols; however, the polarized radiances at 490 nm and 670 nm decreased as AOT increased for coarse dust aerosols. Thus, the vari- ation of the polarized radiance with AOT can be used to identify fine or coarse particle-dominated aerosols. Polar- ized radiances at three wavelengths for fine- and coarse-mode aerosols were analyzed and fitted by linear regression. The slope of the line for 670 nm and 490 nm wavelength pairs is less than 0.35 for dust aerosols. However, the value for fine-mode aerosols is greater than 0.60. The Support Vector Machine method （SVM） based on 12 vector features was used to discriminate clear sky, coarse dust aerosols, fine-mode aerosols, and cloud. Two cases were given and validated by AErosol RObotic NETwork （AERONET） measurements, MODIS （Mod- erate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer） FMF （Fine Mode Fraction at 550 nm） images, PARASOL RGB （Red Green Blue） images, and CALIOP （Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization） VFM （Vertical Feature Mask） data.     

夏季贝加尔湖南侧环流异常的前兆信号

利用1978—2012年NCEP/NCAR逐月再分析资料,对夏季贝加尔湖南侧环流异常的前兆信号进行分析。结果表明:前期冬季印度尼西亚到西太平洋地区对流与夏季贝加尔湖南侧反气旋式环流异常存在一致的变化,为预测夏季贝加尔湖南侧环流异常的前兆信号之一。即当前期冬季印度尼西亚到西太平洋地区对流活动偏强时,夏季对流区北抬至青藏高原西侧,进而有利于贝加尔湖南侧反气旋式环流异常的发生和维持。但是,进一步研究表明,夏季西印度洋对流活动异常将干扰青藏高原及其西侧的对流上升运动对贝加尔湖环流的影响。当夏季西印度洋对流偏强时,前期冬季印度尼西亚到西太平洋对流和夏季青藏高原西侧对流变化表现出不一致。偏强的西印度洋对流将干扰青藏高原及其西侧的对流上升运动对贝加尔湖环流的影响,进而不利于贝加尔湖南侧反气旋式环流异常的形成。当夏季西印度洋对流异常弱时,前期冬季印度尼西亚到西太平洋地区的对流可能引起夏季贝加尔湖南侧环流异常,两者呈现一致的变化;但当夏季西印度洋对流强盛时,将可能改变上述两者的变化关系。     

基于ROMS模型数值研究南海温跃层的季节变化

On the basis of the regional ocean modeling system （ROMS）, the seasonal variations of the thermocline in the South China Sea （SCS） were numerically investigated. The simulated hydrodynamics are in accordance with previous studies： the circulation pattern in the SCS is cyclonic in winter and anticyclonic in summer, and such a change is mostly driven by the monsoon winds. The errors between the modeled temperature profiles and the observations obtained by cruises are quite small in the upper layers of the ocean, indicating that the ocean status is reasonably simulated. On the basis of the shapes of the vertical temperature profiles, five thermocline types （shallow thermocline, deep thermocline, hybrid thermocline, double thermocline, and multiple thermocline） are defined herein. In winter, when the northeasterly monsoon prevails, most shallow shelf seas in the northwest of the SCS are well mixed, and there is no obvious thermocline. The deep region generally has a deep thermocline, and the hybrid or double thermocline often occurs in the areas near the cold eddy in the south of the SCS. In summer, when the southwesterly monsoon prevails, the shelf sea area with a shallow thermocline greatly expands. The distribution of different thermocline types shows a relationship with ocean bathymetry： from shallow to deep waters, the thermocline types generally change from shallow or hybrid to deep thermocline, and the double or multiple thermocline usually occurs in the steep regions. The seasonal variations of the three major thermocline characteristics （the upper bound depth, thickness, and intensity） are also discussed. Since the SCS is also an area where tropical cyclones frequently occur, the response of thermocline to a typhoon process in a short time scale is also analyzed.     

The distribution of chlorophyll a and its influencing factors in different regions of the Bering Sea

The distribution of chlorophyll a(Chl a) and its relationships with physical and chemical parameters in different regions of the Bering Sea were discussed in July 2010. The results showed the seawater column Chl a concentrations were 13.41–553.89 mg/m2 and the average value was 118.15 mg/m2 in the study areas. The horizontal distribution of Chl a varied remarkably from basin to shelf in the Bering Sea. The regional order of Chl a concentrations from low to high was basin, slope, outer shelf, inner shelf, and middle shelf. The vertical distribution of Chl a was grouped mainly from single-peak type in basin, slope, outer shelf, and middle shelf, where the deep Chl a maxima(DCM) layer was observed at 25–50 m, 30–35 m, 36–44 m, and 37–47 m, respectively. The vertical distribution of Chl a mainly had three basic patterns: standard single-peak type, surface maximum type, and bottom maximum type in the inner shelf. The analysis also showed that the transportation of ocean currents may control the distribution of Chl a, and the effects were not simple in the basin of the Bering Sea. There was a positive correlation between Chl a and temperature, but no significant correlation between Chl a and nutrients. The Bering Sea slope was an area deeply influenced by slope current. Silicate was the factor that controlled the distribution of Chl a within parts of the water in the slope. Light intensity was an important environmental factor in controlling seawater column Chl a in the shelf, where Chl a was limited by nitrate rather than phosphate within the upper water. Meanwhile, there was a positive relationship between Chl a and salinity. Algal blooms broke out at Sta. B6 of the southwestern St. Lawrence Island and Stas F6 and F11 in the middle of the Bering Strait.     

Ecological indicators showing the succession of macrofauna communities in Sonneratia apetala artificial mangrove wetlands on Qi’ao Island at Zhuhai, South China

The Sonneratia apetala artificial mangroves in the intertidal zone of Da Wei Bay at Qi’ao Island of Zhu-hai, South China were chosen as the macrofauna succession plots while bare tidal flats of the same size were established as control plots in surrounding interference-free areas. Conventional change indicators of community structure, such as biomass and biodiversity, and indicators, such as exergy and specific exergy, which reflect the information change of overall communities, were used to analyze the succession of macro-fauna communities inS. apetala artificial mangroves. The similarities and differences in variation tendency of the different ecological indicators and their reflected ecological principles were compared. The results showed that from D-1 to D-1275 after plantingS. apetala, the biomass of the macrofauna communities first increased, which was then followed by an increase in the network relationship between the macrofauna communities （analysis of the Pielou evenness index and Shannon-Wiener diversity index）. The system in-formation （specific exergy） increased the slowest. Between D-1460 and D-2370 after plantingS. apetala, there was a decrease in biomass, network structure, and system information in the succession plots. After the decrease in the system information （the specific exergy）, there was a decline in the network relationships （Pielou evenness index and Shannon-Wiener diversity index）. Biomass was the last indicator to decrease. The similarities and differences among the different ecological indicators varied during the succession pro-cess, which reflected the relativity and differences among the indicators. This study suggested that, although the species diversity index can be an effective indicator of two types of changes （network structure and system information）, it was quite clear that species diversity measurement was not suitable for expressing the changes in biomass during the succession process. While exergy and specific exergy can provide useful information     

2014年4月大气环流和天气分析

2014年4月大气环流特征为,北半球极涡呈单极型分布,中心位于喀拉海北端附近;亚洲大陆东部高压脊强度偏强,导致4月我国气温较常年同期(11.0℃)偏高1.1℃,为1961年同期以来第五高值。东亚大槽强度和位置、南支系统和西北太平洋副热带高压接近常年平均状况。4月全国平均降水量为43.7 mm,比常年同期略偏少。月内,江南南部和华南等地出现短时强降水、雷雨大风等强对流天气;北方地区出现多次沙尘天气过程;此外,部分站次出现极端高温、极端降温事件。     

Analysis of a Heavy Rainfall Event over Beijing During 21-22 July 2012 Based on High Resolution Model Analyses and Forecasts

The heaviest rainfall over 61 yr hit Beijing during 21-22 July 2012.Characterized by great rainfall amount and intensity,wide range,and high impact,this record-breaking heavy rainfall caused dozens of deaths and extensive damage.Despite favorable synoptic conditions,operational forecasts underestimated the precipitation amount and were late at predicting the rainfall start time.To gain a better understanding of the performance of mesoscale models,verification of high-resolution forecasts and analyses from the WRFbased BJ-RUCv2.0 model with a horizontal grid spacing of 3 km is carried out.The results show that water vapor is very rich and a quasi-linear precipitation system produces a rather concentrated rain area.Moreover,model forecasts are first verified statistically using equitable threat score and BIAS score.The BJ-RUCv2.0forecasts under-predict the rainfall with southwestward displacement error and time delay of the extreme precipitation.Further quantitative analysis based on the contiguous rain area method indicates that major errors for total precipitation（〉 5 mm h~（-1）） are due to inaccurate precipitation location and pattern,while forecast errors for heavy rainfall（〉 20 mm h~（-1）） mainly come from precipitation intensity.Finally,the possible causes for the poor model performance are discussed through diagnosing large-scale circulation and physical parameters（water vapor flux and instability conditions） of the BJ-RUCv2.0 model output.     

不同季节内剩余环流时空结构转换及其演变特征的研究

利用ERA-Interim资料,采用改进的变形欧拉平均方法对1979—2011年剩余环流季节内时空结构转换及其演变特征进行了分析。结果表明:(1)150 hPa附近4—8月剩余环流上升中心发生了整体向北移动的趋势,而9月至次年2月则表现为整体向南的移动,并且6—8月和9—11月的移动较为明显,分别向北和向南移动了3.168°和2.277°。(2)对流层内的剩余质量输送显著增强,但是热带环流上升区以及穿越对流层顶进入平流层的输送存在着减弱的趋势。(3)两半球高纬度100 hPa附近从最低平流层向下输送的质量通量以及热带对流层顶附近向上输送的质量通量在各季节年代际变化中基本都是减弱的,仅在6—8月和9—11月北半球向下质量通量出现了增强。     

Spectrum Analysis of Wind Profiling Radar Measurements

Unlike previous studies on wind turbulence spectrum in the planetary boundary layer, this investigation focuses on high-altitude （1-5 km） wind energy spectrum and turbulence spectrum under various weather conditions. A fast Fourier transform （FFT） is used to calculate the wind energy and turbulence spectrum density at high altitudes （1-5 km） based on wind profiling radar （WPR） measurements. The turbulence spectrum under stable weather conditions at high altitudes is expressed in powers within a frequency range of 2 × 10-5-10-3 s-1, and the slope b is between -0.82 and -1.04, indicating that the turbulence is in the transition from the energetic area to the inertial sub-range. The features of strong weather are reflected less obviously in the wind energy spectrum than in the turbulence spectrum, with peaks showing up at different heights in the latter spectrum. Cold windy weather appears over a period of 1.5 days in the turbulence spectrum. Wide-range rainstorms exhibit two or three peaks in the spectrum over a period of 15-20 h, while in severe convective weather conditions, there are two peaks at 13 and 9 h. The results indicate that spectrum analysis of wind profiling radar measurements can be used as a supplemental and helpful method for weather analysis.     

Quantifying contributions of climate feedbacks to tropospheric warming in the NCAR CCSM3.0

In this study, a coupled atmosphere-surface “climate feedback-response analysis method” (CFRAM) was applied to the slab ocean model version of the NCAR CCSM3.0 to understand the tropospheric warming due to a doubling of CO₂ concentration through quantifying the contributions of each climate feedback process. It is shown that the tropospheric warming displays distinct meridional and vertical patterns that are in a good agreement with the multi-model mean projection from the IPCC AR4. In the tropics, the warming in the upper troposphere is stronger than in the lower troposphere, leading to a decrease in temperature lapse rate, whereas in high latitudes the opposite it true. In terms of meridional contrast, the lower tropospheric warming in the tropics is weaker than that in high latitudes, resulting in a weakened meridional temperature gradient. In the upper troposphere the meridional temperature gradient is enhanced due to much stronger warming in the tropics than in high latitudes. Using the CFRAM method, we analyzed both radiative feedbacks, which have been emphasized in previous climate feedback analysis, and non-radiative feedbacks. It is shown that non-radiative (radiative) feedbacks are the major contributors to the temperature lapse rate decrease (increase) in the tropical (polar) region. Atmospheric convection is the leading contributor to temperature lapse rate decrease in the tropics. The cloud feedback also has non-negligible contributions. In the polar region, water vapor feedback is the main contributor to the temperature lapse rate increase, followed by albedo feedback and CO₂ forcing. The decrease of meridional temperature gradient in the lower troposphere is mainly due to strong cooling from convection and cloud feedback in the tropics and the strong warming from albedo feedback in the polar region. The strengthening of meridional temperature gradient in the upper troposphere can be attributed to the warming associated with convection and cloud feedback in the tropics. Since convection is the leading contributor to the warming differences between tropical lower and upper troposphere, and between the tropical and polar regions, this study indicates that tropical convection plays a critical role in determining the climate sensitivity. In addition, the CFRAM analysis shows that convective process and water vapor feedback are the two major contributors to the tropical upper troposphere temperature change, indicating that the excessive upper tropospheric warming in the IPCC AR4 models may be due to overestimated warming from convective process or underestimated cooling due to water vapor feedback.