Stable Atmospheric Boundary Layer Over a Uniform Slope: Some Theoretical Concepts

Theoretical arguments are developed to describe the effects of a uniform slope on the development of the stably stratified atmospheric boundary layer (SBL). A maximum sustainable surface buoyancy flux exists for the SBL overlying a uniform, non-sloping surface. In this study it is shown that the SBL overlying a uniform shallow slope (with gradient of the order of 1:1000) also supports a maximum sustainable buoyancy flux, B _max, but that the value of B _max is influenced by the gradient of the slope, γ. It is demonstrated that in the limit γ → 0, results for the SBL over a horizontal surface are recovered.