Eddy flux measurements over Lake Ontario

Wind, temperature and humidity fluctuations have been recorded using a sonic anemometer-thermometer, a thrust anemometer, and a La humidiometer. The two anemometers agree in wind speed and stress. Exchange coefficients for momentum, heat and moisture are found to agree with values measured over other bodies of water.Contribution 391, Bedford Institute of Oceanography.Project 75 BL, International Field Year for the Great Lakes.     

Turbulence above Lake Ontario: Velocity and scalar statistics

Measurements of the fluctuations of wind, temperature and humidity were made with an instrumented aircraft at altitudes from 30 to 300m above Lake Ontario. The variations of the standard deviations of these fluctuations are examined. By applying Monin-Obukhov similarity theory based on local fluxes, it is shown that the vertical velocity, temperature and humidity fluctuations scale with the local Monin-Obukhov length. In the limit of free convection, 1/3 and –1/3 power laws are approached with constants of 1.2, 1.2, and 0.8 for vertical velocity, temperature and humidity, respectively. The von Karman scale lengths increase with height but were much larger than those found by Taylor et al. (1970).     

A wind tunnel study of air flow in waving wheat: Two-point velocity statistics

Two-point, space-time correlations of streamwise and vertical velocity were obtained from a wind tunnel simulation of an atmospheric surface layer with an underlying model wheat canopy constructed of flexible nylon stalks. Velocity data extend from 1/6 canopy height to several canopy heights, with in excess of 2000 three-dimensional vector separations of the two x-wire probes. Isocorrelation contours over anx, z slice show the streamwise velocity autocorrelation to be roughly circular, such that vertical velocities at the same horizontal position but different heights are closely in phase. Cross-correlations between the two velocity components reflect this difference to some extent. Lateral displacements of the probes revealed side lobes with correlations of reversed sign but we cannot positively link this pattern to particular vorticular structures. Integral length scales obtained directly from the spatial correlations match similar scales deduced from single-point time series with Taylor's hypothesis at 2 to 3 times the canopy height but greatly exceed such scales at lower levels, particularly within the wheat. We conclude that the reversed sign lateral lobes are important components of the correlation field and that an integral length scale for the lateral direction must be defined such that they are included. Convective velocities obtained from the time lag to optimally restore correlation lost by physical separation of the probes change only slowly with height and greatly exceed the mean wind velocity within and immediately above the canopy. Thus, mean wind velocity is not a suitable proxy for convective velocity in the application of Taylor's hypothesis in this situation. The ratio of vertical to longitudinal convective velocity for the streawise velocity signal yields a downwind tilt angle of about 39° which is probably a better estimate of the slope of the dominant fluid motions than the tilt of the major axis of the isocorrellation contours mentioned previously.     

A numerical simulation of an observed lake breeze over Southern Lake Ontario

A time-dependent, two-dimensional primitive-equation atmospheric boundary-layer model has been applied to the South shore of Lake Ontario, using data obtained by Estoque et al. (1976).The model has correctly predicted the times of onset, maximum intensity and disappearance of the lake breeze. However, it underestimated the maximum inland penetration of the lake breeze, probably due to the fact that horizontal variations of surface potential temperature over the land had not been taken into account.     

Wind‐induced microseisms from Lake Ontario

Abstract

The characteristics of microseisms measured in four vaults of the Southern Ontario Seismic Network within 30 km of the shore of Lake Ontario are analysed. It is shown that the rms values in the 1–3 Hz band are coherent between the stations, indicating a common generative mechanism. A distinct onshore intermittent flux of Rayleigh‐like wave energy was detected at a site near the shore. Microseismic energy in this band is distinctly correlated with the wind speed. The incremental microseismic energy above an absolute minimum activity as a function of wind direction, for a given fixed wind speed, correlates with the average fetch of the wind over the lake, indicating that the source of microseisms is the lake itself. The sensitivity to fetch effects is similar for both onshore and offshore stations indicating that shoaling is probably not a source. Niagara Falls, which also can have a wind‐dependent flow from Lake Erie, causes a measurable effect to at least 25 km but does not significantly affect stations at a distance of 150 km.     

Observations and numerical modelling of Lake Ontario breezes

Abstract

Analysis of two years of land‐based data shows that the Lake Ontario breeze develops on 30% of the days during summer. It typically develops in mid‐morning and persists until the late evening when it is replaced by a well developed land‐breeze regime. Simulations of 4 cases with the Colorado State University mesoscale model show good agreement with observations and suggest that local lake breezes are strongly influenced by adjacent water bodies (e.g. Lake Erie), the elongated shape of the lake, and the large‐scale wind direction. With gradient flows across the long axis of the lake, a broad band of along‐lake flow develops during the afternoon (easterly winds during southerly gradient flows and westerly winds during northerly gradient flows). Furthermore, during west‐to‐northwesterly gradient flow a nocturnal cyclonic eddy is predicted at the western end of the lake. These results imply that wind‐field models applied in the vicinity of Lake Ontario should incorporate the entire lake in their modelling domain.     

Surface albedo at a tower site in Lake Ontario

Measurements of incoming global, diffuse and reflected radiation at a tower site in Lake Ontario are used to evaluate components of surface albedo. Albedo for diffuse radiation lies between 0.074 and 0.082 and a coefficient for backscatter from sub-surface water layers shows little deviation from a mean of 0.017. Direct beam albedo for a calm surface follows the Fresnel law. Waves increase direct-beam albedo particularly at higher solar zenith angles. A pronounced dependence of albedo upon zenith angle for clear skies decreases with increasing cloud amount and becomes undetectable in overcast conditions. On a daily basis, albedo ranged between 0.07 in early July to 0.11 in mid-November. Day-to-day scatter is within ±1% of the mean seasonal trend.     

Regional turbulent statistics over contrasting natural surfaces

Summary Regional turbulent fluxes of momentum, sensible and latent heat collected over both agricultural and native vegetation in the south west of Australia are presented. Analysis of the energy spectrum illustrates that the most energetic eddies are between scales of 20 metres to 5 kilometres and highlights the spatial distance required to obtain representative regional fluxes. For the sensible heat flux, this distance is a function of measurement height whereas the latent flux is also influenced by surface variability. Statistics of these fluxes highlight that for the unstable surface layer, despite marked differences in the underlying vegetation and the corresponding sources of heat and moisture, heat is transported more efficiently than water vapour from the ground surface. Received October 9, 2000/Revised April 23, 2001     

Variation in wind velocity over water

Starting from the equations of motion and continuity, a theoretical model is deduced in this paper for the variation in wind velocity over water caused by abrupt changes in surface roughness and temperature when air flows from land to water, based on the consideration that the turbulent exchange coefficient varies with height and distance from the upwind edge. According to the computation of this model, the variation in wind velocity over water, as the drift of air is from land to water, occurs mainly in the first few kilometers from the upwind edge. The wind velocity over water increases to a maximum when the air over land is stable, it tends to moderate when neutral condition is reached, and least variation is shown in unstable condition. And when the air over land is unstable the wind velocity is less over water than over land in strong winds, but some-what greater in light winds.     

Air mass modification over Lake Michigan

The modification of a relatively cold air mass over the warm water of Lake Michigan is studied by using a two-dimensional nonlinear mesoscale model. Considerable amounts of heat and water vapor are supplied from the water surface to the lower atmosphere by turbulent eddies. A convective mixed layer develops and grows toward the downwind region with stratocumulus clouds over the lake.The model simulates the warming and moistening of the mixed layer, the development of a boundary layer, the divergence and convergence of wind near the coastlines, and the turbulent fluxes.The model warming of the mixed layer across the lake was about 2.2 °K and the moistening of the mixed layer was about 0.8 g kg^–1, which are comparable to 2.7 °K and 0.8 g kg^–1 observed by Lenschow (1973). The convective boundary layer, which includes the cloud layer, subcloud layer, and superadiabatic layer near the water surface, is well simulated. The tilt of the inversion which coincides with the cloud top is also well reproduced. When a prescribed cooling rate is applied at the cloud top, stronger turbulence and a deeper cloud layer are generated. Without the cooling, the cloud is shallow and the shape of the cloud base is determined by surface conditions. The rise of the inversion is due to upward vertical motion, and deepening of the convective layer in the downwind region.     

On momentum flux and velocity spectra over waves

Data from a research tower in Lake Ontario are used to study the validity of Monin--Obukhov scaling in the marine atmospheric boundary layer under various wave conditions. It is found that over pure wind seas, the velocity spectra and cospectra follow established universal scaling laws. However, in the presence of swells outrunning weak winds, velocity spectra and cospectra no longer satisfy universal spectral shapes. Here, Monin–Obukhov similarity theory, and the classical logarithmic boundary layers, are no longer valid. It is further shown that, in the presence of such swells, the momentum flux can be significantly modified in comparison to pure wind sea values. The implications of these findings for bulk flux estimations and on the inertial dissipation method for calculating fluxes are discussed.     

The influence of buoyancy on third-order turbulent velocity statistics within a deciduous forest

The influence of atmospheric stability on the behaviour of the third moment of flow velocities observed inside a deciduous forest canopy is examined. Results suggest that buoyancy plays a dominant role in dictating the magnitude of gusts observed inside tall vegetation. Furthermore, an examination of the turbulence recorded throughout leaf fall inside the same forest indicates that larger velocity skewnesses are observed inside a canopy in full leaf than inside a sparse canopy. The behaviour of the measured terms in the non-dimensionalized rate equation of the third moment of canopy flow velocities is also examined. Turbulent diffusion and turbulence gradient interaction terms are largest in stable conditions in the upper canopy layer while these are most important in unstable conditions in the lower canopy layer. In all stability regimes, the turbulent diffusion term is the main source of skewness. The turbulence gradient interaction term, the residual and buoyant production terms all contribute to destroy skewness in stable conditions.     

Upper-Level Winds over Southern Ontario: O-QNet Wind Profiler and NARR Comparisons

Upper-level winds are primarily measured by tracking the position of radiosonde balloons as they rise through the atmosphere. Radiosondes are released from a global network at 0000 utc and 1200 utc each day, and data are quickly available to the world's weather services, as well as to the public. The network is relatively coarse spatially, and there are normally only two soundings per day. In an endeavour to provide better spatial and temporal upper-level regional wind measurements, the O-QNet (a demonstration very high frequency wind profiler network for Ontario and Quebec) was installed and has been operated by York, Western, and McGill Universities with support from Mardoc Inc., The Weather Network, and Environment and Climate Change Canada. Initial funding was provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Ontario Innovation Trust, and Mardoc Inc. The present paper reports primarily on comparisons between winds measured by the O-QNet profilers and the winds reported in the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR). There is good agreement between the two, which provides support for the use of NARR data to investigate longer term variations in upper-level winds associated with climate change for this region.     

Net radiation over the Aswan High Dam Lake

Summary Net radiation is an essential parameter for estimating evaporation from large water surfaces by energy balance method. Net radiation has been measured for the first time over the Aswan High Dam Lake on the Nile River for 132 days including warm and cold seasons. A high multiple linear correlation coefficient of 0.98 was obtained between the measured net radiation on the one hand and the global solar radiation measured at Aswan and the difference between water and air temperatures measured over the Lake on the other hand.Seven different empirical formulae for estimating the effective outgoing radiation have been applied on the average data measured over the Lake for days of clear sky. It has been found that the Swinbank formula is the best one suitable for the location of the Aswan High Dam Lake.With 2 Figures     

A wind tunnel study of air flow in waving wheat: Single-point velocity statistics

We analyse single-point velocity statistics obtained in a wind tunnel within and above a model of a waving wheat crop, consisting of nylon stalks 47 mm high and 0.25 mm wide in a square array with frontal area index 0.47. The variability of turbulence measurements in the wind tunnel is illustrated by using a set of 71 vertical traverses made in different locations, all in the horizontally-homogeneous (above-canopy) part of the boundary layer. Ensemble-averaged profiles of the statistical moments up to the fourth order and profiles of Eulerian length scales are presented and discussed. They are consistent with other similar experiments and reveal the existence of large-scale turbulent coherent structures in the flow. The drag coefficient in this canopy as well as in other reported experiments is shown to exhibit a characteristic height-dependency, for which we propose an interpretation. The velocity spectra are analysed in detail; within and just above the canopy, a scaling based on fixed length and velocity scales (canopy height and mean horizontal wind speed at canopy top) is proposed. Examination of the turbulent kinetic energy and shear stress budgets confirms the role of turbulent transport in the region around the canopy top, and indicates that pressure transport may be significant in both cases. The results obtained here show that near the top of the canopy, the turbulence properties are more reminiscent of a plane mixing layer than a wall boundary layer.     

Sensitivity of Lake-Effect Convection to the Lake Surface Temperature over Poyang Lake in China

In this study, high-resolution weather research and forecasting (WRF) simulations are used to explore the sensitiv- ity of lake-effect convection over Poyang La...     

苏通大桥桥位江面风速的数值试验

用WRF中尺度模式对苏通大桥桥位江面的风速进行了数值模拟。在修改了模式自带的静态地形数据后模拟效果较修改前有所改善。并发现在对天气系统有较准确模拟的情况下模式对桥位江面最大风速的模拟也较为精确,反之结果相差较多。挑选了其中两个个例并使用修改过静态地形数据的模式分别对地形和一些物理方案作敏感性试验,发现各种因素对模拟结果都有着不同程度的影响,起决定性作用的是水陆分布;在没有强对流天气系统的情况下各种微物理参数化方案对模拟结果均不产生明显影响;模拟时需加入长短波辐射参数化和边界层参数化方案,并且其中YSU边界层参数化方案的模拟结果最为理想。在缺乏江面风观测数据的时段里模式对江面风速的模拟结果具有一定的参考价值。     

骆马湖大风试验资料对比分析

骆马湖是江苏省四大湖泊之一,位于宿迁和徐州两市交界,与宿豫区、新沂市、邳州市、濉宁县相邻,南北长27Km,东西宽13Km,是集防洪、灌溉、航运、发电、水产养殖、捕捞、采沙、旅游观光等于一体的综合性大型平原水库,湖区大风的发生与演变关系到湖区航运、水产养殖、捕捞、采沙、旅游观光等的作业安全。根据宿迁市政府关于骆马湖安全气象保障服务和风能开发利用及多轨道气象业务的需要,宿迁市气象局2005-04—2006—04进了骆马湖大风试验观测。