Effects of land-surface heterogeneity upon surface fluxes and turbulent conditions

Summary In this paper, we examine the effects of land-surface heterogeneity on the calculation of surface-energy and momentum fluxes in a meso-scale atmospheric model. A series of numerical experiments has been carried out with a combination of different resolutions for the atmosphere and the land surface, which allows an examination of the aggregation and dynamic effects associated with land-surface heterogeneity. The numerical results show that for a given atmospheric model resolution, increased land-surface resolution leads to better estimates of surface-energy and momentum fluxes, and for a given land-surface resolution, increased atmospheric model resolution also improves the estimates of these fluxes. This latter result contradicts the prevailing view that subgrid variation in atmospheric data plays only a minor role in estimating the fluxes. It is also shown that subgrid land-surface heterogeneity leads to increased turbulent fluctuations. The responsible mechanisms of this effect are both the subgrid variation of surface-energy fluxes and their impact upon the development of convective cells. It is suggested that subgrid atmospheric motions induced by surface heterogeneity may be an important factor which needs to be considered in subgrid closure schemes for atmospheric models. Received August 28, 2000/Revised June 1, 2001     

近地面层湍流通量观测误差的比较

本文根据误差理论分析并比较了在近地面层内各种间接确定湍流通量方法的观测误差。空气动力学法由于采用不同的通用函数将造成很大的误差。H扣除法确定潜热通量,当Bowen比较小时误差较小,Bowen比B>1之后误差随B的增大迅速增长。在相同的观测条件下间接法确定湍流通量以Bowen比法和组合法误差最小,实例计算表明组合法的精度最高。     

不同地表通量计算方案的比较与改进

利用2006年南京地区边界层外场观测资料对摩擦速度(u*)和摩擦温度(θ*)的几种计算方案进行了比较.u*计算方案的比较结果表明:在不稳定条件下,Pleim方案计算结果同实测值相比,二者在量值及变化趋势上都有较好的一致性;而在稳定条件下,计算结果较差,为此本文给出了一个新的计算方案,结果表明,改进方案有效的提高了u*计算精度,平均相对误差由56%降低到21%.θ*计算方案的比较结果表明:基于动力粗糙度和热力粗糙度相等的Lee方案计算误差较大,而引入阻尼项的Wesely方案计算结果较前者有明显改进.     

Modelling surface energy fluxes and temperatures in dry and wet bare soils

Abstract

A physically‐based numerical model was developed to estimate the temporal course of the surface energy flux densities and the soil temperatures in dry and wet bare soils. Aerodynamic heat, vapour and momentum transfer theory was used to calculate the sensible and latent heat flux densities at the surface under diabatic and adiabatic conditions. A finite‐difference solution of the differential equation describing one‐dimensional heat transfer was used to calculate the surface soil heat flux density and soil profile temperatures. The surface temperature was determined iteratively by the simultaneous solution of equations describing radiative, heat and momentum transfer at the surface. The model was tested with measurements from energy balance studies conducted on a dry, sandy soil and a wet, silt loam soil, and was found to predict accurately the surface energy fluxes and soil temperatures over three‐day periods under conditions of potential and negligible evaporation. The sensitivity of the model to uncertainties in the aerodynamic roughness lengths for momentum (z₀) and heat (z_T) is reported. Values for z₀ and Z₀/Z_T of 0.5 mm and 3.0, respectively, resulted in the best agreement between modelled and measured values of the fluxes and temperatures for both soils.     

Atmospheric turbulent fluxes over snow

On March 26, 1971, eddy fluxes of momentum, sensible heat and water vapour were measured over Lake Mendota, Wisconsin, U.S.A., which was covered by an extensive snowfall. An evaporation rate of about 0.7mm day^–1 (2.2 mW cm^–2) was detected. Wind speeds were light and the atmosphere near the surface was highly stable. In these conditions, the average sensible heat transfer and Reynolds stress were -0.9 mW cm^–2 and 0.10 dyn cm^–2, respectively. Comparison with measured gradients of wind speed, temperature and humidity yield a drag coefficient of about 0.54 × 10^–3, and bulk transfer coefficients for sensible and latent heat of 0.41 × 10^–3 and 0.78 × 10^–3, respectively, applied to 10-m data. When corrected for the effect of atmospheric stability, these three coefficients become (in the same order) 1.2 × 10^–3, 0.9 × 10^–3 and 2.5 × 10^–3. The errors in these estimates are such that the drag coefficient is not significantly different from that corresponding to an aerodynamically smooth surface, while the heat coefficients are similar to those normally applied over liquid water surfaces.     

Divergence of turbulent fluxes in the surface layer: case of a coastal city

This study quantifies the processes that take place in the layer between the mean building height and the measurement level of an energy balance micrometeorological tower located in the dense old core of a coastal European city. The contributions of storage, vertical advection, horizontal advection and radiative divergence for heat are evaluated with the available measurements and with a three-dimensional, high-resolution meteorological simulation that had been evaluated against observations. The study focused on a summer period characterized by sea-breeze flows that affect the city. In this specific configuration, it appears that the horizontal advection is the dominant term. During the afternoon when the sea breeze is well established, correction of the sensible heat flux with horizontal heat advection increases the measured sensible heat flux up to 100 W m⁻². For latent heat flux, the horizontal moisture advection converted to equivalent latent heat flux suggests a decrease of 50 W m⁻². The simulation reproduces well the temporal evolution and magnitude of these terms.     

Limitations of the Eddy-correlation technique for the determination of turbulent fluxes near the surface

Recent measurements of turbulent fluxes by Desjardins and Lemon (1973) probably involve underestimates in these fluxes of 40 % or more, because of poor sensor response to high frequency fluctuations. Indications are that use of the Gill propeller anemometer as a sensor of vertical velocity fluctuations should be confined to heights greater than 5 m over land, and greater than 10 m over the sea.     

A numerical investigation on the interaction of turbulent and long-wave radiative fluxes in the surface layer

The interaction of turbulent and radiative transfer applied to a number of plausible atmospheric situations in the surface layer under the stably stratified condition is discussed.The calculated results show that the long-wave radiative flux has a great influence upon the thermal structure of the surface layer, and that it usually acts in such a way as to weaken the thickness of the constant turbulent heat flux layer. In the case of low wind velocities and strongly stable stratifications, the thickness of the turbulent heat flux layer will become very thin and/or inexistent.     

Quadrant analysis of the scalar and momentum fluxes in the stable marine atmospheric surface layer

The quadrant technique, a conditional sampling approach that allocates Reynolds stresses into four different types of events (ejections or bursts, sweeps, inward interactions and outward interactions), is applied to stable marine atmospheric boundary-layer data, collected in the framework of the Coupled Boundary Layer Air—Sea Transfer, Low wind component experiment at Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, USA. The general properties of both scalar and momentum transport are analyzed under the scope of quadrant analysis experimentally and theoretically. It is shown that the third-order Gram–Charlier series is necessary and even sufficient in most of the cases, in describing the experimental time and flux contributions of each quadrant to the total transfer, for both scalar and momentum transport, while the ability of the Gaussian distribution is limited to outlining the general pattern of these quantities. Moreover, a threshold value is applied to the conditional analysis, separating the most important events from the less significant ones and the sensitivity of the flux and especially the time fraction of each quadrant on the choice of this value is presented and discussed. Also, a set of numerically extracted equations, completing the analytical relations, is derived, enabling the prediction of the time and flux fractions of each quadrant, for a wide range of correlation coefficient and threshold values. Finally, the sensitivity of the analysis to the atmospheric stability and the Reynolds averaging scales showed that correlated and uncorrelated motions tend to balance for increasingly stable conditions and/or for large time scales.     

The characteristics of turbulent velocity components in the surface layer under convective conditions

It is proposed that the ratios of the standard deviations of the horizontal velocity components to the friction velocity in the surface layer under convective conditions depend only onz _i /L wherez _i is the height of the lowest inversion andL is the Monin-Obukhov length. This hypothesis is tested by using observations from several data sets over uniform surfaces and appears to fit the data well. Empirical curves are fitted to the observations which have the property that at largez _i /-L, the standard deviations become proportional tow _*, the convective scaling velocity.Fluctuations of vertical velocity obtained from the same experiments scale withz/L, wherez is the height above the surface, in good agreement with Monin-Obukhov theory.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

A comparative study of observed and GCM-simulated turbulent surface fluxes at the positions of Atlantic weatherships

If oceanic models are to be driven with transient atmospheric input, data from standard daily analyses or from an atmospheric GCM simulation can be used. The question arises whether these “FF-data” (FF = field forcing) are appropriate to be used as a realistic oceanic forcing in the form of wind stress and turbulent heat fluxes.A series of different FF-data sets is compared with respective “LF-data” (LF = local forcing) derived from in situ weathership observations. We believe these LF data to be the most accurate and reliable long year maritime time series. The study is restricted to 8 Atlantic weatherships and January conditions and to fields obtained with the Hamburg University GCM or derived from analyses of the German Weather Service (DWD).It turns out that DWD based FF data sets are suitable only if long year mean values are required. In general, the interannual and synoptic scale variability is too small for all FF data sets. With respect to the windstress, the empirical formulae to obtain the surface wind (from the sea level pressure field) together with the usage of a windspread dependent drag coefficient yield the best though still unsatisfying results. The approach using generalized similarity theory gives worse results with respect to the synoptic scale and interannual variability.The GCM simulated data set is systematically biased over wide regions which is partly due to a shift in the model's quasistationary Icelandic Low and an increased temperature at the model's lowest level. The transients are simulated at some positions even poorer than those analysed by the DWD, but at other positions superior though still weaker than the LF data's.     

Evaluation of turbulent fluxes over Maitri,Antarctica

Turbulent fluxes have been evaluated for clear sunny days over the Indian Antarctic station, Maitri, using the basic meteorological data recorded at four levels of a 28 m tower. The data are supplemented with radiation data. The surface layer over Maitri remains thermally stratified during the hours of minimum solar insolation, the so-called nighttime period. The surface winds during this period are generally very strong resulting in high momentum fluxes. In particular, for high winds (>12 m s^–1), the temperature gradient is found to be less positive than for moderate winds (4 to 7 m s^–1). Solar insolation provided the daytime heating necessary for the diurnal variation of atmospheric stability, and hence, for the turbulent fluxes. Thus, on clear days daytime conditions are marked by upward transport of heat with reduced momentum flux, while stable nighttime conditions are marked by a downward heat flux with increased momentum fluxes.     

Modelling sensible and latent heat fluxes over sea during unstable,very close to neutral conditions

During slightly unstable but still very close to neutral conditions new results from two previous investigations have shown a significant increase of sensible and latent heat fluxes over the sea. The vertical heat transport during these conditions is dominated by detached eddies originating at the top of the boundary layer, bringing relatively cold and dry air to the surface. This effect can be described in numerical models by either enhanced heat transfer coefficients for sensible and latent heat (Stanton and Dalton numbers respectively) or with an additional roughness length, added to the original roughness lengths for heat and humidity. Such new expressions are developed using turbulence measurements from the Baltic Sea valid for wind speeds up to 14 m s⁻¹. The effect of including the increased heat fluxes is investigated using two different numerical models: a regional three-dimensional climate model covering northern Europe, and a process-oriented ocean model for the Baltic Sea. During periods of several days, the latent heat flux can be increased by as much as 100 W m⁻². The increase in sensible heat flux is significantly smaller since the process is only of importance in the very near-neutral regime where the sensible heat flux is very small. The long-term average effect over the Baltic Sea is of the order of several W m⁻².     

On the bulk parameterization of surface fluxes for various conditions and parameter ranges

A comparison between various parameterizations for the bulk transfercoefficient for heat and momentum is carried out for a wide range ofatmospheric stability and values of the roughness lengths for momentum and heat,z_0m and z_0h respectively.It is confirmed that the parameterization of Launiainen compares wellto a numerical iterative solution for the Obukhov length L as function of the gradients of wind speed and temperatureover a limited range of z_0m/z_0h and stability conditions.For _0m/z_0h > 500, an alternativeinterpolation formulation of Holtslag and Ek,in combination with the formulation of Launiainen, provides a better approximation.     

Spatial variability of turbulent fluxes and roughness lengths in HAPEX-MOBILHY

Surface-based and aircraft measured fluxes over the heterogeneous surface in HAPEX-MOBILHY are analyzed for the ten flight days when cloud cover above the boundary layer was minimal. The fair-weather climatology of the spatial variation of surface fluxes is estimated to provide an assessment of the generality of previous case studies appearing in the literature. For the 10-day averages, greater heating over the forest generates a forest breeze which leads to rising motion and a modest increase of boundary-layer cloud cover at the forest edge. The exchange coefficients and effective roughness lengths are computed for local averages (15 km scale) and for regional averages (100 km scale) intended to represent a range of grid sizes in numerical models of the atmosphere. The effective roughness length for momentum over the mixed agricultural region for both scales is on the order of 1 m, apparently due to bluff roughness effects associated with scattered trees, edges of small woods and other obstacles. This roughness length value is an order of magnitude larger than values used in numerical models for the same region, which are based on the dominant vegetation type. The spatially varying effective roughness length for heat is computed for use in those models which use surface radiation temperature to estimate surface heat flux. The effective roughness lengths for heat are found to be smaller than those typically used in numerical models of the atmosphere.     

Similarity theory and calculation of turbulent fluxes at the surface for the stably stratified atmospheric boundary layer

In this paper we revise the similarity theory for the stably stratified atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), formulate analytical approximations for the wind velocity and potential temperature profiles over the entire ABL, validate them against large-eddy simulation and observational data, and develop an improved surface flux calculation technique for use in operational models.     

青藏高原东坡理塘地区近地层湍流通量与微气象特征研究

简要介绍青藏高原东坡理塘大气综合观测站长期观测试验,并利用2006年1、7月资料分别代表该站冬季和夏季,初步分析和比较该地区冬、夏季近地层微气象特征和湍流通最输送情况,得到了以下结论:(1)风、温、湿均表现出明显的日变化特征.冬季风速值平均大于夏季,风速极大值均出现在下午;冬季温度梯度早晚大,白天小,而夏季均较小;湿度梯度早晚大于白天.(2)中件条件下风速廓线对数关系表现为一条直线而非中件条件下略偏离对数关系,晚上均有逆温现象出现.在一定高度能观测到较弱的逆湿现象.(3)冬季以感热为主,潜热值较小,夏季以潜热为主,但感热也较大,且冬季通量值要远小于夏季;冬季动量通量平均大于夏季,二氧化碳通量远小于夏季;浅层(地面以下2和5 cm)土壤热通量也具有明显的日变化特征,白天从土壤吸收热量,夜间则放出热量.(4)地面热源强度具有显著的日变化特征:白天为强热源,夜间冷热源特征不明显.冬季和夏季全天平均表现为热源,但夏季强度远大于冬季,平均达到134 W/m2左右,冬季仪约35.3 W/m2.     

Characteristics of turbulent fluxes of sensible heat and momentum in the surface boundary layer during the Indian summer monsoon

Turbulent fluctuations of wind and temperature were measured using a three-component sonic anemometer at 8 m on a 30 m micro-meteorological tower erected at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur (22.3° N, 87.2° E), India, as part of the Monsoon Trough Boundary Layer Experiment (MONTBLEX). Diurnal and nocturnal variations of fluxes of sensible heat and momentum were estimated by the eddy correlation technique from 42 observations, each of 10 min duration during 6–8 July in the monsoon season of 1989. The estimated heat flux shows a diurnal trend while the momentum flux shows variability but no particular trend. The nocturnal heat flux changes sign intermittently.Fluctuations of vertical wind velocity _wand temperature when normalised with the respective scaling parameters u _*and _* are found to scale with Z/L in accordance with the Monin-Obukhov similarity hypothesis: % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeqOXdy2aaS% baaSqaaiaadEhaaeqaaOGaamiEaiaacIcacaWGAbGaai4laiaadYea% caGGPaWaaWbaaSqabeaacaaIXaGaai4laiaaiodaaaaaaa!3FE8!\[\phi _w x(Z/L)^{1/3} \], % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeqOXdy2aaS% baaSqaaiabeI7aXbqabaGccaWG4bGaaiikaiaadQfacaGGVaGaamit% aiaacMcadaahaaWcbeqaaiaaigdacaGGVaGaaG4maaaaaaa!40A2!\[\phi _\theta x(Z/L)^{1/3} \] during unstable conditions and % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeqOXdy2aaS% baaSqaaiaadEhaaeqaaOGaamiEaiaacIcacaWGAbGaai4laiaadYea% caGGPaaaaa!3D90!\[\phi _w x(Z/L)\], % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeqOXdy2aaS% baaSqaaiabeI7aXbqabaGccaWG4bGaaiikaiaadQfacaGGVaGaamit% aiaacMcadaahaaWcbeqaaiabgkHiTiaaigdaaaaaaa!401F!\[\phi _\theta x(Z/L)^{ - 1} \] during stable conditions. Correlation coefficients for heat and momentum flux % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeq4SdC2aaS% baaSqaaiaadEhacqaH4oqCaeqaaaaa!3A71!\[\gamma _{w\theta } \] and _uwshow stability dependence. For unstable conditions, % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeq4SdC2aaS% baaSqaaiaadEhacqaH4oqCaeqaaaaa!3A71!\[\gamma _{w\theta } \] increases with increasing ¦Z/L¦ whereas _uwdecreases. During stable conditions, % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaeq4SdC2aaS% baaSqaaiaadEhacqaH4oqCaeqaaaaa!3A71!\[\gamma _{w\theta } \] decreases with increasing Z/L while _uwdecreases very slowly from a value -0.36 to -0.37.     

Nonstationarity of turbulent heat fluxes at Summit,Greenland

Turbulence data collected over a total of 25 days during two summers are used to describe processes responsible for the nonstationarity of turbulent sensible heat fluxes at Summit, Greenland. A stationarity test shows that about 40% of the data are classified as nonstationary. Three main factors are explored to account for the large fraction of nonstationary runs: (1) intermittency of turbulence in stable conditions, (2) changes in net all-wave radiation in response to cloud forcing, and (3) diurnal trends in stability. A classification procedure that accounts for the intermittent nature of turbulence shows that during stable, nonstationary conditions 50% of the total sensible heat flux is realized in 22% of the sampling time. Intermittency often occurs at Summit during periods characterized by weak and irregular horizontal winds in combination with strong stability. Rapid changes in net all-wave radiation in response to cloud forcing results in nonstationarity during unstable conditions. Between 0930–1130 and 1900–1930 UTC turbulent heat fluxes are not only small in magnitude but also typically change sign, with nonstationarity during these periods often as high as 65%. These results should help resolve some of the present uncertainties in obtaining reliable fluxes at this site, in particular under stable atmospheric conditions.