Relation of Richardson number to the curvature of the wind profile

Values of Richardson number (Ri) and the wind profile curvature () in the atmospheric surface layer are evaluated from experimental data. The relationship between Ri and shows some scatter, but gives agreement with the theoretical relation derived by Businger et al. (1971).     

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.     

Effects of water vapour on the structure parameter of the refractive index for near-infrared radiation

The refractive index of air (n) mainly depends on temperature andwater vapour content. For near-infrared radiation, temperature isthe main determining factor. To determinethe structure parameter of temperature ( ) fromthe structure parameter of the refractive index( ), the influence ofwater vapour content on n needs to be taken into account as acorrection. Three levels of approximation are presented. The firstinvolves the standard deviations of T and q (_T and_q) as well as the correlation coefficient betweenT and q (R_Tq). The second approximation involvesR_Tq and the Bowen ratio (), and the last uses only the Bowen ratio.The latter is the classical Bowen ratio correction.Evaluation of the validity of the assumptions used in the derivationreveals that a large error may be introduced (for situations withR_Tq < 0.8) by replacing _T/_qwith the Bowen ratio.Consequently, estimating from using the Bowen ratiocan contain errors of 5–40% for || < 1. Adding R_Tqas extra information reduces the errors only marginally. For || > 1,the correction is small, and all three approximations give errors of lessthan 1% in . When is used to compute the sensible heat flux,the influence of the quality of the correction forwater vapour fluctuations on the measured energy balance is small: forsmall ||, the correction is large, but the absolute value ofthe heat flux is small, whereas for large ||, the correctionis insignificant.     

Rainwater composition over a rural area with special emphasis on the size distribution of insoluble particulate matter

The rainwater composition in the vicinity of Mainz, FRG, has been investigated with special emphasis on insoluble constituents. The number size distribution was determined in the range from 0.1 m up to 100 m radius. For particles with r>0.5 m radius the shape of the size distribution of insoluble particles in rain follows the shape of the average urban and rural aerosol. In this particular size range no major size selective removal processes could be seen. For r<0.5 m the number size distribution tends to flatten compared to the average aerosol. This might be the indication of a size selective removal process (Greenfield Gap).     

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.     

Analytical solutions for the Ekman layer

The PBL equation that governs the transition from the constant-stress surface layer to the geostrophic wind in a neutrally stratified atmosphere for which the eddy viscosityK(z) is assumed to vary smoothly from the surface-layer value U _*z (0.4,U _*=friction velocity,z=elevation) to the geostrophic asymptoteK _GU _*d forzd is solved through an expansion in fd/U _*1 (f=Coriolis parameter). The resulting solution is separated into Ekman's constant-K solution an inner component that reduces to the classical logarithmic form forzd and isO() relative to the Ekman component forzd. The approximationKU _*d is supported by the solution of Nee and Kovasznay's phenomenological transport equation forK(z), which yieldsK–U _*d exp(–z/d), where is an empirical constant for which observation implies, 1. The parametersA andB in Kazanskii and Monin's similarity relation forG/U _* (G=geostrophic velocity) are determined as functions of . The predicted values ofG/U _* and the turning angle are in agreement with the observed values for the Leipzig wind profile. The predicted value ofB based on the assumption of asymptotically constantK is 4.5, while that based on the Nee-Kovasznay model is 5.1; these compare with the observed value of 4.7 for the Leipzig profile. A thermal wind correction, an asymptotic solution for arbitraryK(z) and 1, and an exact (unrestricted ) solution forK(z)=U _*d[1–exp(–z/d)] are developed in appendices.     

A study of the sensitivity of bare soil evaporation schemes to soil surface wetness,using the coupled soil moisture and surface temperature prediction model,BARESOIL

Summary The performance of evaporation schemes with and approach and their combination within resistance representation of evaporation from bare soil surface is discussed. For this purpose nine schemes, based on different functions of or , on the ratio of the volumetric soil moisture content and its saturated value are used.The quality of the chosen schemes has been evaluated using the results of time integration by the coupled soil moisture and surface temperature prediction model, BARESOIL, using in situ data. A sensitivity analysis was made using two sets of data derived from the volumetric soil moisture content of the top soil layer. One with values below the wilting point (0.17 m³m^–3) and the second with values above 0.20m³m^–3. Data sets were obtained at the experimental site Rimski anevi, Yugoslavia, from the bare surface of a chernozem soil.With 4 Figures     

The validation of various schemes for parameterizing evaporation from bare soil for use in meteorological models: A numerical study using in situ data

Parameterization of evaporation from a non-plant-covered surface is very important in the hierarchy strategy of modelling land surface processes. One of the representations frequently used in its computation is the resistance formulation. The performance of the evaporation schemes using the , , and their combination resistance approaches to parameterize evaporation from bare soil surfaces is discussed. For that purpose, the nine schemes, based on a different dependence of and on volumetric soil moisture content and its saturated value, are used.The tests of performances of the considered schemes are based on time integrations by the land surface module (BARESOIL) using observed data. The 23 data sets at a bare surface experimental site in Rimski anevi, Yugoslavia on chernozem soil, were used for the resistance algorithm evaluation. The quality of the schemes was compared with the observed values of the latent heat flux using several statistical parameters.     

Gas and Particle Products Distribution from the Reaction of β-Caryophyllene with Ozone

Gas and particulate reaction products from the ozonolysis of -caryophyllene (I) in the presence of atmospheric air were investigated using a combination of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). A Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer system (3936, TSI) and a Condensation Particle Counter (3025A, TSI) were used to study secondary organic aerosol formation. The nighttime oxidation was carried out in a large outdoor smog chamber (190 m³). A wide range of ring retaining and ring opening products in the gas and particle phase are reported over the course of the reaction. On average, measured gas and particle phase products accounted for 64% of the reacted -caryophyllene (I) carbon. Measurements show that a number of reaction products with low vapor pressure (e.g., -caryophyllone aldehyde (IV), -norcaryophyllone aldehyde (V), -caryophyllonic acid (VIII), -14-hydroxycaryophyllonic acid (XIV)) were found in the sample taken during the first 20 min of the reaction and may play an important role in the early formation of secondary organic aerosol. A detailed mechanism is proposed to account for most products observed in this investigation.     

A study of a fair weather boundary layer in TOGA-COARE: Parameterization of surface fluxes in large scale and regional models for light wind conditions

The study focuses on a way to parameterize the effect of subgrid scale convective motions on surface fluxes in large scale and regional models for the case of light surface winds. As previously proposed, these subgrid effects are assumed to scale with the convection intensity through the relationship: where is the mean velocity of the wind, U₀ the velocity of the mean wind, w_* the free convection velocity, and an empirical coefficient to be determined. Both observations and numerical simulation are presently used to determine the free convection coefficient .Large eddy simulation of a fair weather convective boundary layer case observed during TOGA-COARE is performed. Comparisons between observations and the simulation of surface properties and vertical profiles in the planetary boundary layer are presented. The simulated vertical turbulent fluxes of heat, moisture and buoyancy range well within estimates from aircraft measurements.The most important result is that the true free convection coefficient , directly estimated from simulation, leads to a value of 0.65, smaller than the ones estimated from temporal and spatial variances. Using observations and simulation, estimates of from temporal and spatial variances are obtained with similar values 0.8. From both theoretical derivations and numerical computations, it is shown that estimates of the true from variances are possible but only after applying a correction factor equal to 0.8. If this correction is not used, is overestimated by about 25%. The time and space sampling problem is also addressed in using numerical simulations.     

An astronomical determination of the turbidity parameters of the atmosphere

Summary A number of star observations, which were carried out at the Stephanion Observatory located in southern Greece, was analysed in order to determine the turbidity parameters and of the atmosphere.The method used is a modification of the de Vaucouleurs' method (1965) employing least squares analysis. The results which were found for these parameters are bounded in the expected limits.With 2 Figures     

Northern hemisphere atmospheric response to changes of atlantic ocean SST on decadal time scales: a GCM experiment

Analyses indicate that the Atlantic Ocean seasurface temperature (SST) was considerably colder at the beginning than in the middle of the century. In parallel, a systematic change in the North Atlantic sea-level pressure (SLP) pattern was observed. To find out whether the SST and SLP changes analyzed are consistent, which would indicate that the SST change was real and not an instrumental artifact, a response experiment with a low-resolution (T21) atmospheric GCM was performed. Two perpetual January simulations were conducted, which differ solely in the Atlantic Ocean (40° S-60° N) SST: the cold simulation utilizes the SSTs for the period 1904–1913; the warm simulation uses the SSTs for the period 1951–1960. Also, a control run with the model's standard SST somewhat between the cold and warm SST was made. For the response analysis, a rigorous statistical approach was taken. First, the null hypothesis of identical horizontal distributions was subjected to a multivariate significance test. Second, the level of recurrence was estimated. The multivariate statistical approaches are based on hierarchies of test models. We examined three different hierarchies: a scale-dependent hierarchy based on spherical harmonics (S), and two physically motivated ones, one based on the barotropic normal modes of the mean 300 hPa flow (B) and one based on the eigenmodes of the advection diffusion operator at 1000 hPa (A). The intercomparison of the cold and warm experiments indicates a signal in the geostrophic stream function that in the S-hierarchy is significantly nonzero and highly recurrent. In the A-hierarchy, the low level temperature field is identified as being significantly and recurrently affected by the altered SST distribution. The SLP signal is reasonably similar to the SLP change observed. Unexpectedly, the upper level stream-function signal does not appear to be significantly nonzero in the B-hierarchy. If, however, the pairs of experiments warm versus control and cold versus control are examined in the B-hierarchy, a highly significant and recurrent signal emerges. We conclude that the cold versus warm response is not a small disturbance that would allow the signal to be described by eigenmodes of the linear system. An analysis of the three-dimensional structure of the signal leads to the hypothesis that two different mechanisms are acting to modify the model's mean state. At low levels, local heating and advection are dominant, but at upper levels the extratropical signal is a remote responce to modifications of the tropical convection.This paper was presented at the International Conference on Modelling of Global Climate Change and Variability, held in Hamburg 11–15 September 1989 under the auspices of the Meteorological Institute of the University of Hamburg and the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology. Guest Editor for these papers is Dr. L. Dilmenil.AWI Publication no. 254     

Numerical modeling of the nocturnal urban boundary layer

A numerical case study with a second-order turbulence closure model is proposed to study the role of urban canopy layer (UCL) for the formation of the nocturnal urban boundary layer (UBL). The turbulent diffusion coefficient was determined from an algebraic stress model. The concept of urban building surface area density is proposed to represent the UCL. Calculated results were also compared with field observation data. The height of the elevated inversion above an urban center was simulated and found to be approximately twice the average building height. The turbulent kinetic energy k, energy dissipation rate , and turbulence intensities u ² and w ² increase rapidly at the upwind edge of the urban area. The Reynolds stress uw displayed a nearly uniform profile inside the UBL, and the vertical sensible heat flux w had a negative value at the inversion base height. This indicates that the downward transport of sensible heat from the inversion base may play an important role in the formation of the nocturnal UBL.     

Transport-Dissipation Analytical Solutions to the E-∈Turbulence Model and their Role in Predictions of the Neutral ABL

E- turbulence model predictions of the neutralatmospheric boundary layer (NABL) are reinvestigated to determine thecause for turbulence overpredictions found in previous applications. Analytical solutions to the coupled E and equations for the case of steady balance between transport and dissipation terms, the dominant balance just below the NABL top, are derived. It is found that analytical turbulence profiles laminarizeat a finite height only for values of closure parameter ratio c ₂ /_e equal toor slightly greater than one, with laminarization as z for greater . The point = 2 is additionally foundthat where analytical turbulent length scale (l) profilesmade a transition from ones ofdecreasing ( < 2) to increasing ( > 2)values with height. Numerically predicted profiles near the NABL topare consistent with analytical findings. The height-increasingvalues of l predicted throughout the NABL with standard values ofclosure parameters thus appear a consequence of 2.5(> 2), implied by these values (c ₂ = 1.92, _{= 1.3}, _{e = 1}). Comparison of numericalpredictions with DNS data shows that turbulence overpredictions obtained with standard-valued parameters are rectifiedby resetting and _e to 1.1 and 1.6, respectively, giving, with c ₂ = 1.92, 1.3, and laminarization of the NABL's cappingtransport-dissipation region at a finite height.     

An improved calibration for tethered balloon wind measurements

A previously published technique for using tethered spherical balloons as anemometers for measuring light low-level winds has been further developed. Earlier data on the relationship between the aerodynamic drag coefficient and the Reynolds number of spherical rubber balloons were combined with a large number of new data and re-analysed; and the errors in the relationship were estimated. The results allowed a more accurate calculation of wind speed from the deflection of a tethered balloon from the vertical. When combined with a new technique for calculating the effects of the tether, this enabled light to moderate low-level winds at fixed heights up to 600 m or more to be measured with simple, cheap, and readily mobile equipment; and a slight modification of the technique allowed measurement of winds in and above fog. Wind speeds measured by the ballon technique showed reasonably good agreement with measurements by an anemometer carried beneath the balloon.Glossary of Symbols a, b, c Coefficients in the relationship between lnC _d and lnR - A Quantity under square root in solution for lnV whena0 - C _d Wind drag coefficient for balloon - C _dc Value ofC _d given by calibration curve of Table I - D Dynamic wind pressure force on balloon - F Buoyant free lift of balloon with load - Re Reynold's number of balloon (sphere) - R = Re/10⁵ - r Radius of sphere - T Tension in tether - V Wind speed - ₈₃() =(lnC _dc -lnC _d ) when 83° , or 0 for other - Error in lnC _d - Elevation of tether where attached to balloon - Elevation of balloon from ground tether point - Molecular viscosity of air - Ratio of circumference to diameter of circle - Density of air     

Equilibrium evaporation beneath a growing convective boundary layer

Expressions for the equilibrium surface Bowen ratio ( _s ) and equilibrium evaporation are derived for a growing convective boundary layer (CBL) in terms of the Bowen ratio at the top of the mixed layer _i and the entrainment parameter A _R . If A_R is put equal to zero, the solution for _s becomes-that previously obtained for the zero entrainment or closed box model. The Priestley-Taylor parameter is also calculated and plotted in terms ofA _R and _i . Realistic combinations of the atmospheric parameters give values of in the range 1.1 to 1.4.     

Gas-Phase Ozone Oxidation of Monoterpenes: Gaseous and Particulate Products

Atmospheric oxidation of monoterpenes contributes to formation of tropospheric ozone and secondary organic aerosol, but their products are poorly characterized. In this work, we report a series of outdoor smog chamber experiments to investigate both gaseous and particulate products in the ozone oxidation of four monoterpenes: -pinene, -pinene, ³-carene, and sabinene. More than ten oxygenated products are detected and identified in each monoterpene/O₃ reaction by coupling derivatization techniques and GC/MS detection. A denuder/filter pack sampling system is used to separate and simultaneously collect gas and aerosol samples. The identified products, consisting of compounds containing carbonyl, hydroxyl, and carboxyl functional groups, are estimated to account for about 34–50%, 57%, 29–67%, and 24% of the reacted carbon mass for -pinene, sabinene, -pinene, and ³-carene, respectively. The identified individual products account for >83%, 100%, >90%, and 61% of the aerosol mass produced in the ozone reaction of -pinene, sabinene, -pinene, and ³-carene. The uncertainty in the yield data is estimated to be ±50%. Many of the products partition between gas and aerosol phases, and their gas-aerosol partitioning coefficients are determined and reported here. Reaction schemes are suggested to account for the products observed.     

On Trajectory Curvature as a Selection Criterion for Valid Lagrangian Stochastic Dispersion Models

Recently Wilson and Flesch (Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 84, 411-426, 1997) suggested that the average increment d z to the orientation = arctan(w/u) of the Lagrangian velocity-fluctuation vector can be used to distinguish the better Lagrangian stochastic models within the well-mixed class. Here it is demonstrated that the specification of d z constitutes neither a sufficient or universally applicable criterion to distinguish the better Lagrangian stochastic models within the well-mixed class. The hypothesis made by Wilson and Flesch that Lagrangian stochastic models with /P_E irrotational are zero-spin models, having d z=0, is proven     

The carbon isotopic ratio of atmospheric carbon dioxide at Tsukuba,Japan

To find out the secular and seasonal trends of the ¹³C value and CO₂ concentration in the surface air and the determination of the ¹³C in the atmospheric CO₂ collected at Tsukuba Science City was carried out during the period from July 1981 to October 1983. The monthly average of the ¹³C value of CO₂ in the surface air collected at 1400 LMT ranged from -7.52 to \s-8.45 with an average of -7.96±0.25 and the CO₂ concentration in the air varied from 334.5 l 1^-1 to 359 l 1^-1 with an average of 347.2±6.3 l 1^-1. The ¹³C value is high in summer and low in winter and is negatively correlated with the CO₂ concentration. In general, the relationship between the ¹³C and the CO₂ concentration is explainable by a simple mixing model of two different constant carbon isotopic species but the relationship does not always follow the model. The correlation between the ¹³C value and the CO₂ concentration is low during the plant growth season and high at other times. The observed negative deviation of the ¹³C value from the simple mixing model in the plant growth season is partly due to the isotopic fractionation process which takes place in the land biota.