Observations and Numerical Simulations of Urban Heat Island and Sea Breeze Circulations over New York City

Observations from two SOund Detection And Ranging (SODAR) units, a 10 m micrometeorological tower and five Automated Surface Observing Stations (ASOS) were examined during several synoptic scale flow regimes over New York City after the World Trade Center disaster on September 11, 2001. An ARPS model numerical simulation was conducted to explore the complex mesoscale boundary layer structure over New York City. The numerical investigation examined the urban heat island, urban roughness effect and sea breeze structure over the New York City region. Estimated roughness lengths varied from 0.7 m with flow from the water to 4 m with flow through Manhattan. A nighttime mixed layer was observed over lower Manhattan, indicating the existence of an urban heat island. The ARPS model simulated a sea-breeze front moving through lower Manhattan during the study period consistent with the observations from the SODARs and the 10-m tower observations. Wind simulations showed a slowing and cyclonic turning of the 10-m air flow as the air moved over New York City from the ocean. Vertical profiles of simulated TKE and wind speeds showed a maximum in TKE over lower Manhattan during nighttime conditions. It appears that this TKE maximum is directly related to the influences of the urban heat island.     

Development and propagation of a pollution gradient in the marine boundary layer during INDOEX (1999)

The development and propagation of a pollution gradient in the marine boundary layer over the Arabian Sea during the Intensive Field Phase of the Indian Ocean Experiment (1999) is investigated. A hypothesis for the generation of the pollution gradient is presented. Infrared satellite images show the formation of the pollution gradient as the leading edge of a polluted air mass in the marine boundary layer and also its propagation over the Arabian Sea and the northern Indian Ocean. Aerosol data measured from two research vessels over the Arabian Sea show a variation in the concentrations caused by the passage of this pollution gradient. Depth of the pollution gradient was found to be about 800 m. A numerical model was used to simulate the development of this gradient and its propagation over the ocean. Results show that its formation and structure are significantly influenced by the diurnal cycle of coastal sea-land breeze circulations along India’s west coast. Transport of aerosols and gases over the Arabian Sea in the lower troposphere from land sources appears to be through this mechanism with the other being the elevated land plume.     

Mesoscale Analysis of a Carolina Coastal Front

During the Intensive Observation Period (IOP) 7 (22 February 1986) of the Genesis of Atlantic Lows Experiment a persistent coastal front was observed along the Carolina coast in the eastern United States. An intensive baroclinic zone, associated with the cold air damming to the east of the Appalachian Mountains, and the warm marine atmospheric boundary layer over the Gulf Stream, resulted in a northeasterly low-level geostrophic wind maximum near the coast.Two convergence zones were observed, one near the shore and the other near the western edge of the Gulf Stream. The convergence zone near the coastline was relatively weaker than that near the Gulf Stream. The differential surface thermal forcing caused enhanced convergence associated with the frontogenesis, and a meso-low was observed over the offshore front. The terms in the frontogenesis equation are estimated, and the diabatic term is found to be larger than the frontogenetic confluence term along the shore.     

VEBEX: Vegetation and surface energy balance experiment for the tropics

Surface features such as soil moisture and vegetation have a profound impact on the surface energy balance and the atmospheric boundary layer. To quantify this effect for a tropical location, a detailed field experiment, VEBEX, was designed and successfully executed in a tropical site at Bangalore, India. VEBEX was a joint experiment between the North Carolina State University, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), and the University of Agricultural Science (UAS) at Bangalore, India. Continuous surface meteorological measurements were taken over an entire crop period (pre-sowing to post-harvest). During different stages of the plant growth, intensive observations of surface turbulence, and measurements of physiological and soil moisture measurements were also conducted. The results obtained provide an insight into the unusually strong variability for the tropics. Interpretation of the observations and an overview of the analysis procedure and future research initiatives are also presented.     

UNCERTAINTY IN THE SPECIFICATION OF SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS: A STUDY OF PREDICTION ERRORS IN THE BOUNDARY LAYER

The effects of uncertainty in the specification of surface characteristics on simulated atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) processes and structure were investigated using a one-dimensional soil-vegetation-boundary layer model. Observational data from the First International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project Field Experiment were selected to quantify prediction errors in simulated boundary-layer parameters. Several numerical 12-hour simulations were performed to simulate the convective boundary-layer structure, starting at 0700 LT 6 June 1987.In the control simulation, measured surface parameters and atmospheric data were used to simulate observed boundary-layer processes. In the remaining simulations, five surface parameters – soil texture, initial soil moisture, minimum stomatal resistance, leaf area index, and vegetation cover – were varied systematically to study how uncertainty in the specification of these surface parameters affects simulated boundary-layer processes.The simulated uncertainty in the specification of these five surface parameters resulted in a wide range of errors in the prediction of turbulent fluxes, mean thermodynamic structure, and the depth of the ABL. Under certain conditions uncertainty in the specifications of soil texture and minimum stomatal resistance had the greatest influence on the boundary-layer structure. A lesser but still moderately strong effect on the simulated ABL resulted from (1) a small decrease (4%) in the observed initial soil moisture (although a large increase [40%] had only a marginal effect), and (2) a large reduction (66%) in the observed vegetation cover. High uncertainty in the specification of leaf area index had only a marginal impact on the simulated ABL. It was also found that the variations in these five surface parameters had a negligible effect on the simulated horizontal wind fields. On the other hand, these variations had a significant effect on the vertical distribution of turbulent heat fluxes, and on the predicted maximum boundary-layer depth, which varied from about 1400–2300 m across the 11 simulations. Thus, uncertainties in the specification of surface parameters can significantly affect the simulated boundary-layer structure in terms of meteorological and air quality model predictions.     

A numerical modeling study of the marine boundary layer over the Gulf Stream during cold air advection

A two-dimensional mesoscale model has been developed to simulate the air flow over the Gulf Stream area where typically large gradients in surface temperature exist in the winter. Numerical simulations show that the magnitude and the maximum height of the mesoscale circulation that develops downwind of the Gulf Stream depends on both the initial geostrophic wind and the large-scale moisture. As expected, a highly convective Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) develops over this area and it was found that the Gulf Stream plays an important role in generating the strong upward heat fluxes causing a farther seaward penetration as cold air advection takes place. Numerical results agree well with the observed surface fluxes of momentum and heat and the mesoscale variation of vertical velocities obtained using Doppler Radars for a typical cold air outbreak. Precipitation pattern predicted by the numerical model is also in agreement with the observations during the Genesis of Atlantic Lows Experiment (GALE).List of Symbols u east-west velocity [m s^–1] - v north-south velocity [m s^–1] - vertical velocity in coordinate [m s^–1] - w vertical velocity inz coordinate [m s^–1] - gq potential temperature [K] - q moisture [kg kg^–1] - scaled pressure [J kg^–1 K^–1] - U _g the east-south component of geostrophic wind [m s^–1] - V _g the north-south component of geostrophic wind [m s^–1] - vertical coordinate following terrain - x east-west spatial coordinate [m] - y north-south spatial coordinate [m] - z vertical spatial coordinate [m] - t time coordinate [s] - g gravity [m² s^–1] - E terrain height [m] - H total height considered in the model [m] - q _s saturated moisture [kg kg^–1] - p pressure [mb] - p ₀₀ reference pressure [mb] - P precipitation [kg m^–2] - vertical lapse rate for potential temperature [K km^–1] - L latent heat of condensation [J kg^–1] - C _p specific heat at constant pressure [J kg^–1 K^–1] - R gas constant for dry air [J kg^–1 K^–1] - R _v gas constant for water vapor [J kg^–1 K^–1] - f Coriolis parameter (2 sin ) [s^–1] - angular velocity of the earth [s^–1] - latitude [^o] - K _H horizontal eddy exchange coefficient [m² s^–1] - t integration time interval [s] - x grid interval distance inx coordinate [m] - y grid interval distance iny coordinate [m] - adjustable coefficient inK _H - subgrid momentum flux [m² s^–2] - subgrid potential temperature flux [m K s^–1] - subgrid moisture flux [m kg kg^–1 s^–1] - u _* friction velocity [m s^–1] - _* subgrid flux temperature [K] - q _* subgrid flux moisture [kg kg^–1] - w _* subgrid convective velocity [m s^–1] - z ₀ surface roughness [m] - L Monin stability length [m] - _s surface potential temperature [K] - k von Karman's constant (0.4) - v air kinematic viscosity coefficient [m² s^–1] - K _M subgrid vertical eddy exchange coefficient for momentum [m² s^–1] - K subgrid vertical eddy exchange coefficient for heat [m² s^–1] - K _q subgrid vertical eddy exchange coefficient for moisture [m² s^–1] - z _i the height of PBL [m] - h _s the height of surface layer [m]     

Mean and turbulent structure of a baroclinic marine boundary layer during the 28 January 1986 cold-air outbreak (GALE 86)

Aircraft (NCAR Electra), ship (R/V Cape Hatteras), buoy (NCSU Buoy 2) and satellite (NOAA-7 and 9) measurements have been used to observe the structure of the Marine Boundary Layer (MBL) offshore of Wilmington, North Carolina, during the intense cold-air outbreak of 28 January, 1986, as part of the Genesis of Atlantic Lows Experiment (GALE). Air mass modification processes, driven primarily by the surface turbulent latent and sensible heat fluxes, caused the overlying air mass to warm and moisten as it advected over the warmer waters of the eastern United States continental shelf. Maximum observed total (latent + sensible) heat flux was 1045W/m² (at a height of 49 m) over the core of the Gulf Stream. Heat flux values decreased both east and west of this region, primarily in response to changes in the air-sea temperature difference.MBL height increased steadily in the offshore direction in response to increasing convection. The turbulent structure showed a buoyancy-dominated MBL between 0.1 z/h and 0.8 z/h; whereas shear was important above and below this level, vertical transport of kinetic energy (KE) was dominant as a source term only above 0.8 z/h. The normalized turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) budgets observed at different offshore locations showed general agreement at different flight levels. Thus the findings support the validity of the similarity relations under intense convective conditions.     

A Note on the Estimation of Eddy Diffusivity and Dissipation Length in Low Winds over a Tropical Urban Terrain

— Urban terrain poses a challenge for modeling air pollutant diffusion. In tropics, because of the dominant low wind speed environment, the importance of understanding the turbulence diffusion is even more critical, and uncertain. The objective of this study is to estimate the vertical eddy diffusivity of an urban, tropical atmosphere in low–wind speeds. Turbulence measurements at 1 Hz were made at 4-m level over an urban terrain with a roughness length of 0.78 m during winter months. Eddy diffusivity is estimated from spectral quantities of the turbulence data involving turbulent kinetic energy (E) and its dissipation rate (?). The spectral information of the vertical velocity fluctuations is used to estimate the vertical length scale which provides information on the eddy diffusivity. In addition, the product of friction velocity and the vertical length scale has been used to non-dimensionalize the eddy diffusivity, which is shown to increase with increasing instability. Using the eddy diffusivity (K) estimates from the E – ? approach, a relation is suggested for the mixing length based eddy diffusivity models of the form: K = c _w .[2.5 ? 0.5(z/L)], where z is the measurement height, L is the Obukhov length, and c _w has an average value close to 1 for unstable and near 0.5 for stable conditions for the urban terrains.     

A global map of rainfed cropland areas (GMRCA) at the end of last millennium using remote sensing

The overarching goal of this study was to produce a global map of rainfed cropland areas (GMRCA) and calculate country-by-country rainfed area statistics using remote sensing data. A suite of spatial datasets, methods and protocols for mapping GMRCA were described. These consist of: (a) data fusion and composition of multi-resolution time-series mega-file data-cube (MFDC), (b) image segmentation based on precipitation, temperature, and elevation zones, (c) spectral correlation similarity (SCS), (d) protocols for class identification and labeling through uses of SCS R²-values, bi-spectral plots, space-time spiral curves (ST-SCs), rich source of field-plot data, and zoom-in-views of Google Earth (GE), and (e) techniques for resolving mixed classes by decision tree algorithms, and spatial modeling. The outcome was a 9-class GMRCA from which country-by-country rainfed area statistics were computed for the end of the last millennium. The global rainfed cropland area estimate from the GMRCA 9-class map was 1.13 billion hectares (Bha). The total global cropland areas (rainfed plus irrigated) was 1.53 Bha which was close to national statistics compiled by FAOSTAT (1.51 Bha). The accuracies and errors of GMRCA were assessed using field-plot and Google Earth data points. The accuracy varied between 92 and 98% with kappa value of about 0.76, errors of omission of 2–8%, and the errors of commission of 19–36%.