Estimates of diabatic wind speed profiles from near-surface weather observations

In this paper we analyse diabatic wind profiles observed at the 213 m meteorological tower at Cabauw, the Netherlands. It is shown that the wind speed profiles agree with the well-known similarity functions of the atmospheric surface layer, when we substitute an effective roughness length. For very unstable conditions, the agreement is good up to at least 200 m or z/L–7(z is height, L is Obukhov length scale). For stable conditions, the agreement is good up to z/L1. For stronger stability, a semi-empirical extension is given of the log-linear profile, which gives acceptable estimates up to ~ 100 m. A scheme is used for the derivation of the Obukhov length scale from single wind speed, total cloud cover and air temperature. With the latter scheme and the similarity functions, wind speed profiles can be estimated from near-surface weather data only. The results for wind speed depend on height and stability. Up to 80 m, the rms difference with observations is on average 1.1 m s^–1. At 200 m, 0.8 m s^–1 for very unstable conditions increasing to 2.1 m s^–1 for very stable conditions. The proposed methods simulate the diurnal variation of the 80 m wind speed very well. Also the simulated frequency distribution of the 80 m wind speed agrees well with the observed one. It is concluded that the proposed methods are applicable up to at least 100 m in generally level terrain.     

The Value Of The β Coefficient In The Relaxed Eddy Accumulation Method In Terms Of Fourth-Order Moments

The commonly measured value of in the relaxed eddy accumulationmethod of about 0.56is shown to arise from the non-Gaussiannature of turbulence. Fourth-orderGram–Charlier functions forthe two-dimensional probability distributionsof variation in the horizontal component of wind velocityand concentrations of water vapour, carbondioxide and methane with respect to thevertical component of wind velocity are used to examinethe value of .An analytical solution for ispresented in terms of fourth-order moments.Under mean conditions, this solution givesa value for of0.557. Variation of is shown to be controlledprimarily by the ratio of the mean ofc'w3 (where c'is relevant to the entity of interest andw' is vertical component of windvelocity) to the correlationcoefficient between the entity concentrationand vertical component of wind velocity.     

A verification of some methods to determine the fluxes of momentum,sensible heat,and water vapour using standard deviation and structure parameter of scalar meteorological quantities

A set of micro-meteorological data collected over a horizontal, uniform terrain (the plain of La Crau, France) in June 1987 is analysed. Conditions were predominantly sunny and arid, while due to the Mistral the wind speed could exceed 10 m/s. Verification of several methods to evaluate surface fluxes of heat, momentum and water vapour from the standard deviation of temperature, wind and specific humidity is presented. Also, a similar approach using the structure parameter of temperature is considered. These methods are all based on Monin-Obukhov (M-O) similarity theory. It is found that the standard deviation of temperature, vertical and horizontal wind speed as well as the structure parameter for temperature behave according to M-O similarity. It is shown that the sensible heat flux and friction velocity can be determined from a fast response thermometer and a cup anemometer. Also, it appears that the analytic solution of the set of governing equations as derived by the first author yields good results. M-O theory does not appear to work for the standard deviation of specific humidity. This may be due to the relative importance of large eddies.     

Prediction of orographic precipitation using cartesian coordinates and a single prognostic equation for the water substance

The three-dimensional compressible non-hydrostatic mesoscale model ADREA, developed at NCSR Demokritos for wind field and dispersion predictions in complex terrain, is used to perform two-dimensional simulations of orographically induced precipitation. The model makes use of a simple cartesian grid by allowing blocked areas in the grid volumes and grid faces which are crossed by the irregular topography (the so-called porous-medium concept). Additionally, since we are seeking both simplicity and low computational requirements, only one prognostic equation for the whole of the water substance is implemented. The model equations are based on the theory developed for multicom-ponent/multiphase mixtures and give full account of the effects arising from the relative motion between water particles and moist air. The evaluation of the feasibility of this approach is obtained by comparing model predictions with measurements and analytical results concerning orographic precipitation episodes in the mountain barrier of Sierra Nevada.     

Effect of land management on ecosystem carbon fluxes at a subalpine grassland site in the Swiss Alps

Summary The influence of agricultural management on the CO₂ budget of a typical subalpine grassland was investigated at the Swiss CARBOMONT site at Rigi-Seebodenalp (1025m a.s.l.) in Central Switzerland. Eddy covariance flux measurements obtained during the first growing season from the mid of spring until the first snow fall (17 Mai to 25 September 2002) are reported. With respect to the 10-year average 1992–2001, we found that this growing season had started 10 days earlier than normal, but was close to average temperature with above-normal precipitation (100–255% depending on month). Using a footprint model we found that a simple approach using wind direction sectors was adequate to classify our CO₂ fluxes as being controlled by either meadow or pasture. Two significantly different light response curves could be determined: one for periods with external interventions (grass cutting, cattle grazing) and the other for periods without external interventions. Other than this, meadow and pasture were similar, with a net carbon gain of –128±17g Cm^–2 on the undisturbed meadow, and a net carbon loss of 79±17g Cm^–2 on the managed meadow, and 270±24g Cm^–2 on the pasture during 131 days of the growing season, respectively. The grass cut in June reduced the gross CO₂ uptake of the meadow by 50±2% until regrowth of the vegetation. Cattle grazing reduced gross uptake over the whole vegetation period (37±2%), but left respiration at a similar level as observed in the meadow.     

In the Core of the Night-Effects of Intermittent Mixing on a Horizontally Heterogeneous Surface

Intermittent breakdowns that accompany wind gusts at the surface are responsible for a large fraction of the turbulent exchange between the surface and the upper boundary layer in the core of clear nights. Vertical and horizontal structure of the breakdowns are investigated using data from a network of 26 stations in an area of 30 km × 30 km. Surface heterogeneity in the area includes complex terrain with different types of land cover. We treat the fine-scale landscape structure near sensors (sheltering) as a separate component of heterogeneity. These features have important consequences on the spatial distribution of mean variables and surface fluxes. We found that breakdowns connect the surface layer to a higher level (level H_C). Weak wind gusts below a threshold (approximately 1.5 m s^-1) mix the air down to the colder ground, cooling the surface layer. On the other hand, wind gusts above this threshold promote mixing with upper levels, warming the surface layer. The spatial maximum of surface temperature over the network can be used as an estimate of the temperature at H_C, allowing vertical gradients and stability to be approximated. Minimum temperature is a function of topography and sheltering. Appreciable surface fluxes at night occur primarily at high, open locations, and can be large enough there to influencearea-averaged values. Surface-fluxparameterizations currently used in mesoscale models were tested first by estimating fluxes at each station and aggregating, and then by formingarea-averages before estimating fluxes. Results show that these formulations underestimate the average surface fluxes over a region for most of the nights.     

Wind Stress Structure in the Unstable Marine Surface Layer Detected by Sar

The wind stress in the marine surface layer under unstable conditions and low wind speed has been studied using a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) image of the sea surface and time series of the horizontal and vertical wind velocities and of the wind stress recorded on board the C.N.R. research platform, in the northern Adriatic Sea, during a SAR overflight.A conditional sampling technique has been used on the wind stress time series and on the SAR image to detect downward (sweep) and upward (ejection) bursts of the momentum flux, as well as the two-dimensional structure of the radar backscatter.From the ensemble average of both the wind stress and the backscatter structures, it has been possible to estimate the mean duration of the upward (11 s) and the downward (15 s) wind stress bursts and the mean size of the bright patches of the SAR image (120 m). The front of the mean backscatter structure, associated with the downward wind stress bursts, has been related to the time length of the mean sweep stress structure to get, after accounting for a threshold of the wind stress for the generation of the sea surface wavelets, the translation velocity U_t of the mean wind stress of sweep, very close to the mean wind speed. The vertical coherence of the wind stress structures has permited to refer the translation velocity to a level very close to the sea surface, but above the viscous sublayer. The variability of U_t with height has been studied through comparison with the mean wind speed at different heights z calculated by a boundary-layer model. Accounting for the results reported in the literature, there is an indication that U_t is constant with height in the range 0.5 m z 15 m.The two-dimensional pattern of the wind stress structures has been derived from the SAR image. The structures appear elongated crosswind, as with microfronts, with an average cross- to down-wind ratio of 4. The area covered by the downward wind stress structures represents 13% of the total area.     

Influence of foehn winds on air temperature and humdity in the Polish Carpathians

Summary The present study concerns an attempt to determine the influence of foehn winds on air temperature and humidity in the Polish Carpathians. This was carried out using the mean monthly temperature and relative humidity obtained from a number of synoptic stations. Periods with classical foehn conditions and the whole period (1966–1985) of record were analysed.With 3 Figures     

ALPEX-Simulation

Summary In a project ALPEX-Simulation, sponsored by the Österreichischer Fond zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (FWF), all eight cases of ALPEX-SOP cyclones were numerically simulated with a fine mesh isentropic model of the atmosphere. These numerical simulations in six-hourly intervals allow a deeper insight into the synoptics and dynamics of the cyclogeneses in the Western Mediterranean, especially into the genesis of the two basic types of cyclones: the so-called Überströmungs-type and Vorderseiten-type. In the first phase of cyclogenesis of the Überströmungs-type, the blocking and flow splitting of the cold air due to the Alps and the canalization between the Alps and the Massif Central are important. Cold air flows cyclonically around the western part of the Alps, creating a vorticity maximum at the south western edge of the Alpine, bow and leads also to an enhanced PV. In connection with warm air in the Mediterranean, a strong baroclinic zone is generated. The interaction between the arriving PV maximum in the upper troposphere and the enhanced PV at the bottom leads to cyclogenesis in the Western Mediterranean. In the case of the Vorderseiten-type warm air advection dominates with the exception of a shallow layer of cold air in the inner Po-Valley, which is shielded by the Alpine ridge. A well-pronounced PV maximum builds up and couples with the PV maximum arriving at upper levels, even before the cold air, coming from the north-west, has surrounded the Alps. The cold air only intensifies the development by raising the baroclinity. Therefore, the Vorderseiten-cyclogenesis is an orographically modified cyclogenesis, in the course of which the cyclonic development is triggered by the Alps, whereas the Überströmungs-cyclogenesis is an orographically induced cyclogenesis i.e. a true lee cyclogenesis.With 14 FiguresDied in a tragic traffic accident on June 6, 1993.     

Effects of Temperature and Humidity upon the Entrainment of Sedimentary Particles by Wind

Aeolian transport of sedimentary particles is a well-recognized phenomenon in cold regions, but the effect of low temperature (T) and specific humidity (q) upon particle entrainment has not previously been investigated. This study reports on wind-tunnel experiments (-12 °C T 32 °C, and 1 g kg^-1 q 10 g kg^-1) that suggest the aerodynamic drag required to entrain sand sized particles can be 30% lower in cold or high latitude settings, as compared to hot deserts. For any given regional wind velocity, this effect will increase the wind strength index and thereby the proportion of time a surface is active at low temperature.The influence of air temperature and humidity upon the threshold for particle motion is determined by three physical processes: (1) The effect of air viscosity and density on the fluid drag force acting to dislodge sedimentary particles; (2) the effect of viscosity on the turbulent wake shed from these particles, and the frequency and magnitude of burst-sweep events; and (3) the development of inter-particle cohesion via adsorbed water. This study considers the relative importance of each of these processes. The threshold friction velocity model of Shao and Lu is revised to incorporate the inter-particle force associated with hygroscopic water. It is found to perform well when tested against the experimental data obtained for this study.     

Ab initio study on carbon Kinetic Isotope Effect (KIE) in the reaction of CH4+Cl•

Recent studies suggest that the destruction of methane by Cl in the marine boundary layer could be accounted for as another major sink besides the methane destruction by OH. High level ab initio molecular orbital calculations have been carried out to study the CH₄+Cl reaction, the carbon Kinetic Isotope Effect (KIE) is calculated using Conventional Transition-State Theory (CTST) plus Wigner and Eckart semiclassical tunneling corrections. The calculated KIE is around 1.026 at 300 K and has a small temperature variation. This is by far the largest KIE among different processes involving atmospheric methane destruction (e.g., OH, soil). A calculated mass balance of atmospheric methane including the KIE for the CH₄+Cl reaction is found to favor those methane budgets with enhanced biological methane sources, which have relatively lighter carbon isotope composition.     

An observational aircraft-based study of sea-breeze frontogenesis

In the summer of 1988/89 flights were carried out in the Coorong coastal area of South Australia to investigate sea-breeze fronts. The flights yielded data sets of the structure of the fronts in the cross-frontal direction with a spatial resolution of approximately 3 m. The study is focused on the budgets of sensible and latent heat in the vicinity of the front and on frontogenesis/frontolysis processes which are closely related to budget considerations.The frontogenesis relationships and the budgets were established on a 2 km length scale by low-pass filtering of the space series. As the wind components were measured with high accuracy, all processes which determine frontogenesis could be evaluated and are displayed in x,z-cross-sections: these are the confluence, shear and diabatic effects, all of which play a role in q/x-, q/z-, /x- as well as /z-frontogenesis. A detailed analysis is given for two different states of frontal development. The presented results shed much light on the governing physical processes in the frontal region with strong emphasis on the effects of confluence-generated updrafts, on shear instabilities causing bulges and clefts in the frontal surface as well as producing the elevated frontal head, and on processes related to differential heating and moistening.     

The conductivity of the air and other electrical parameters in relation to meteorological elements and air pollution in Athens

Summary The annual and diurnal variation of the conductivity near the ground at Athens, based on long-term data, are presented. The diurnal double oscillation is a characteristic of the atmospheric electric climate of Athens. In addition, the influence of air pollution due to smoke and sulfur dioxide and of wind speed (as an element affecting the dispersion of pollulants) on large ion concentration and on conductivity has been examined. The air pollution, which is often severe in Athens area, results in decreasing conductivity and increasing large ion concentration, while the influence of wind speed is also pronounced. The results justify the use of conductivity as a pollution index. Finally the plausible influence of air temperature and relative humidity and of their rate of change on air electrical conductivity, has been examined. The results are ambiguous and depending on the season, especially for relative humidity.With 3 Figures     

Temperature And Wind Velocity Oscillations Along a Gentle Slope During Sea-Breeze Events

The flow structure on a gentle slope at Vallon dOl in the northern suburbs of Marseille in southern France has been documented by means of surface wind and temperature measurements collected from 7 June to 14 July 2001 during the ESCOMPTE experiment. The analysis of the time series reveals temperature and wind speed oscillations during several nights (about 60--90 min oscillation period) and several days (about 120–180 min oscillation period) during the whole observing period. Oscillating katabatic winds have been reported in the literature from theoretical, experimental and numerical studies. In the present study, the dynamics of the observed oscillating katabatic winds are in good agreement with the theory.In contrast to katabatic winds, no daytime observations of oscillating anabatic upslope flows have ever been published to our knowledge, probably because of temperature inversion break-up that inhibits upslope winds. The present paper shows that cold air advection by a sea breeze generates a mesoscale horizontal temperature gradient, and hence baroclinicity in the atmosphere, which then allows low-frequency oscillations, similar to a katabatic flow. An expression for the oscillation period is derived that accounts for the contribution of the sea-breeze induced mesoscale horizontal temperature gradient. The theoretical prediction of the oscillation period is compared to the measurements, and good agreement is found. The statistical analysis of the wind flow at Vallon dOl shows a dominant north-easterly to easterly flow pattern for nighttime oscillations and a dominant south-westerly flow pattern for daytime oscillations. These results are consistent with published numerical simulation results that show that the air drains off the mountain along the maximum slope direction, which in the studied case is oriented south-west to north-east.     

A numerical case study of a cold air outbreak over East Asia during late spring

Summary A case study of a late spring cold air outbreak associated with heavy rainfall and snow storms over East Asia is carried out with a numerical model. This was the most severe case over northern China in 50 years. In the lower troposphere, the evolution of the edge anticyclone and the northerly low-level orographic jet east of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau are well simulated in the ECMWF limited area model but the associated cold surge is under predicted. In the experiments with envelope and valley filled orography, results are improved. Neither cold surge nor strong frontogenesis is simulated in a no latent heating experiment, indicating that the feedback of latent heat release is quite essential to the burst of cold air in this case.With 9 Figures     

Slope and free air temperature in the Inn valley

Summary Hourly screen temperatures were collected over a four-year period for six stations from the Inn valley floor (580 masl) up the Nordketten slope toHafelekar (2260 masl). In this paper, we develope methods for correcting the observed screen temperatures, converting them into temperatures of the free valley atmosphere. Because of the combined effects of the screen and the slope layer, slope temperatures are, on average, too cold at night and too warm in the daytime.A correction function modelled after the daily march of solar radiation works well for all stations except theHungerburg. Temperatures there are, on average, up to 2.5°C too cold on clear nights, compared to the valley atmosphere, and too warm by up to 1.8°C in the daytime. A modified correction function was derived for the Hungerburg site.The suitability of the correction functions is checked by various, mostly indirect methods, the most important of which utilizes statistics of the daily range of temperature. As a final, integral check on our correction scheme, we compute vertical averages of these daily ranges, obtaining excellent agreement with mean daily ranges derived barometrically from hourly pressure recordings atInnsbruck andHafelekar.With 7 Figures     

Dynamics of limited-area models: Formulation and numerical methods

Summary Following a few historical remarks, approximations used in formulating the dynamics of limited-area and variable resolution atmospheric forecasting models are reviewed. Particular attention is given to current efforts to relax or remove the hydrostatic approximation.Turning to numerical methods used in discretizing the equations, an attempt is made to record recent work and to clarify the motivation for the various approaches being followed by different modeling centers. Topics commented upon include: semi-Lagrangian methods, numerical formulation of nonhydrostatic models, resolution, the eta (step-mountain) vs sigma or isentropic/sigma vertical coordinate, choice of the vertical grid, numerics of the propagation of gravity waves, and the box-average vs pointsample treatment of predicted variables.It is finally pointed out that the extraordinary diversity of roads being taken shows that a lot remains to be discovered as to what possible rewards may be found in exploring one or the other of the principles underlying the methods being developed.This is a revised and updated text of an invited lecture given within the One-Day Intensive Course of the International Workshop on Limited-Area and Variable Resolution Models, Beijing, China, 23–27 October 1995.     

The Bise—Climatology of a regional wind north of the Alps

Summary The Bise is one of several regional winds in the Alpine area occuring in connection with postfrontal pressure rise and cold air advection. Like the Mistral, the Bise is also induced by a synoptiscale 850hPa pressure gradient (dp/dn _(NESW)1 hPa/100 km) and strongly determined by orographic effects.Apart from the classical postfrontal Bise in Spring, a deep Bise with strong cold air advection and sometimes rain appears during winter. A rough survey of the factors determining the wind profile during Bise, which is quite often characterized by a low-level jet structure, shows that dynamical effects induced by the topography like flow splitting, channeling and the formation of countercurrents may be very important.With 11 Figures     

A multifractal analysis of lidar measured water vapour

Accurate and fast-response measurements of space-time observations of specific humidity were made above a drying land surface at the University of California at Davis, using the Los Alamos water Raman-lidar. In an attempt to quantify the space-time intermittency features of turbulent flows in the lower atmosphere, a multifractal analysis of these water vapour measurements was performed. The structure of the specific humidity, (x, t), was analyzed quantifying a scalar gradient measure both in time and space, for all possible one-dimensional cuts, i.e. and . The results confirm the multifractal nature of this scalar gradient measure (a type of scalar dissipation rate) and show that humidity measurements at fixed times (x) are more intermittent (e.g. have less entropy dimension) than those at fixed locations in space (t). Similar multifractal behaviour of the spatial data, with and without a transformation from the observed wind velocities, supports the validity of Taylor's hypothesis for the studied fields.     

Local foehn effects in the upper Isar Valley, part 1: Observations

Summary An unusually strong nocturnal downvalley wind can be regularly observed in the upper Isar Valley close to Mittenwald (Bavarian Alps) when a high-pressure system is located over Central Europe or when ambient southerly winds are present. Due to the structure of the local topography, this downvalley wind has foehn-like properties in the sense that the breakthrough of the flow into the valley is characterized by a strong increase in temperature and a decrease in relative humidity. Therefore the author called this flow Minifoehn. In fact, wind speeds are low in comparison to deep foehn, but gusts may reach values up to 20ms^–1, even under the influence of high pressure systems with weak atmospheric pressure gradients. To investigate the Minifoehn, surface stations have been installed for collecting temperature, humidity, wind and pressure data. Measurements have shown that the Minifoehn represents the upper part of one of the drainage currents which flows over a mountain ridge into the valley at Mittenwald. Nocturnally cooled air drains from a plateau south of Mittenwald through different valleys which merge again near Mittenwald. It seems that the forcing of the nocturnal currents is dominated by the temperature difference between this plateau and the free atmosphere above Mittenwald at the same level. Strong temperature differences are found during clear winter nights and in case of subsidence inversions. Moreover, the appearance of the Minifoehn in autumn and winter is so frequent that we even may find a climatic effect: the upper Isar Valley is usually free of fog during these seasons and nocturnal temperatures are often considerably higher than in other Bavarian Alpine valleys at comparable altitude.