Earthquakes in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006

This report of the Swiss Seismological Service summarizes the seismic activity in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006. During this period, 572 earthquakes and 91 quarry blasts were detected and located in the region under consideration. Of these earthquakes, two occurred in conjunction with the construction of the new Gotthard railway tunnel and 165 were induced artificially by the stimulation of a proposed geothermal reservoir beneath the city of Basel. With 20 events with M _L ≥ 2.5, five of which were artificially induced, the seismic activity in the year 2006 was far below the average over the previous 31 years. Nevertheless, six events were felt by the public, most prominently the strongest of the induced Basel events (M _L 3.4), which caused some non-structural building damage. Noteworthy are also the two earthquakes near Cortaillod (M _L 3.2), on the shore of Lake Neuchatel, and in Val Mora (M _L 3.5), between the Engadin and Val Müstair, as well as the 42 aftershocks of the M _L 4.9 Vallorcine earthquake, between Martigny and Chamonix, of September 2005. Editorial handling: Stefan Bucher     

陆面过程模式研究简评

主要总结了陆面过程模式的发展状况, 对一些国际间合作进行的计划、试验成果以及我国在这方面的研究情况加以介绍和评述, 最后给出陆面模拟研究中存在的难点、问题及可能的解决途径.     

Validation for a tropical belt version of WRF: sensitivity tests on radiation and cumulus convection parameterizations

对基本气候态和降水日变化的分析是检验模式模拟性能、理解模式误差来源的重要手段。为了评估出对热带气候模拟效果较好的物理参数化方案组合,本文应用WRF带状区域模式,主要比较了四种积云对流参数化方案:NewTiedtke、Kain-Fritsch、newSAS、Tiedtke,和两种辐射参数化方案:RRTMG和CAM,对热带带状区域的气候模拟结果。研究表明:使用NewTiedtke积云对流参数化方案和RRTMG辐射方案的试验,表现出对气温、降水及降水日变化等综合性最好的模拟性能;NewTiedtke积云对流参数化方案能模拟出较好的降水空间分布和降水日变化位相分布特征;与RRTMG辐射方案相比,CAM辐射方案会使温度模拟偏低,特别是陆地上更明显,这种陆地上的冷偏差可能主要来源于Tmin的模拟偏冷。     

The Role of Planetary Boundary-Layer Parameterizations in the Air Quality of an Urban Area with Complex Topography

The effect of different planetary boundary-layer (PBL) parameterization schemes on the spatial distribution of atmospheric pollution over the complex topography of the greater Athens area is investigated. Four PBL schemes originally implemented in a numerical meteorological model and a fifth one simulating the urban effect are examined. Two different atmospheric conditions are analyzed; a typical summer and a typical winter pollution episode. The relative importance of chemical and physical processes of the pollution predictions is discussed using process analysis. It is revealed that, for primary pollutants, a local scheme seems more adequate to represent the maximum observed concentrations while, completely different in structure, a non-local scheme reproduces the mean observed values in the basin. Concerning secondary pollutants, peak concentration differences, due to the different PBL schemes, are smoothed out. Nevertheless, the PBL scheme selection shapes the horizontal and the vertical extension of maximum values. The non-local and semi non-local schemes are superior to the others, favouring strong vertical mixing and transport towards the surface. The stronger turbulence accommodated effectively by the semi non-local urban scheme enhances ozone production along the sea-breeze axis and preserves the high ozone concentrations during the nighttime hours in the urban core.     

Implementation of the semi-Lagrangian advection scheme on a quasi-uniform overset grid on a sphere

The semi-Lagrangian advection scheme is implemented on a new quasi-uniform overset （Yin-Yang） grid on the sphere. The Yin-Yang grid is a newly developed grid system in spherical geometry with two perpendicularly-oriented latitude-longitude grid components （called Yin and Yang respectively） that overlapp each other, and this effectively avoids the coordinate singularity and the grid convergence near the poles. In this overset grid, the way of transferring data between the Yin and Yang components is the key to maintaining the accuracy and robustness in numerical solutions. A numerical interpolation for boundary data exchange, which maintains the accuracy of the original advection scheme and is computationally efficient, is given in this paper. A standard test of the solid-body advection proposed by Williamson is carried out on the Yin-Yang grid. Numerical results show that the quasi-uniform Yin-Yang grid can get around the problems near the poles, and the numerical accuracy in the original semi-Lagrangian scheme is effectively maintained in the Yin-Yang grid.     

云凝结核浓度对WRF模式模拟飑线降水的影响：不同云微物理参数化方案的对比研究

采用WRF模式模拟一次影响中国广东省的飑线过程, 分别选取Morrison、 Thompson07、 Thompson09和WDM6云微物理方案实施了四组试验, 每组试验包括不同云凝结核（CCN）浓度的三次模拟, 称为 “低浓度”、 “中浓度” 和 “高浓度”, 将模拟区域划分为深对流、 浅对流和层云区域, 对比分析四组试验中CCN浓度变化对模拟的总降水量、 不同区域降水率和不同区域面积的影响, 进一步分析了云微物理过程、 动力环流强度等受CCN浓度变化的影响。发现: （1） 由于不同云微物理过程与CCN浓度有着直接或间接的联系、 不同云微物理过程之间存在复杂的关联、 云微物理过程与动力环流之间发生非线性耦合, 采用不同的云微物理方案导致模拟的CCN—降雨影响既有相似、 也有差异; （2）模拟的CCN—降水影响在采用Thompson09和Thompson07方案时更显著, 采用WDM6方案时最小; （3）四组模拟试验均出现CCN浓度增加延迟降水产生、 初期降水减弱的情况, 在模拟后期降水量也随着CCN浓度增加而减小, 而飑线成熟阶段CCN—降水影响更加复杂。     

海洋飞沫对热带气旋影响的数值试验

将最新版的Andreas海洋飞沫通量参数化方案与中尺度大气模式MM5V3耦合,对0514号热带气旋Nabi进行数值模拟,探讨海洋飞沫蒸发对热带气旋发展和演变的影响.模拟结果表明,考虑海洋飞沫的作用后,热带气旋范围内(气旋中心附近600 km左右范围内)的潜热和感热通量明显增强,尤其是潜热通量,最大值可提高35%～80%,潜热通量的大值区对应热带气旋眼墙处的最大风速区.无论是否考虑海洋飞沫作用,模式均能较好地模拟出热带气旋Nabi的移动路径,但考虑飞沫作用后,由于飞沫对海气界面通量交换的贡献,使得模拟热带气旋中心的最低海平面气压降低,最大风速增强,暖心结构更加明显.     

Mesoscale numerical simulation study of warm fog dissipation by salt particles seeding

Based on the dynamic framework of WRF and Morrison 2-moment explicit cloud scheme, a salt-seeding scheme was developed and used to simulate the dissipation of a warm fog event during 6–7 November 2009 in the Beijing and Tianjin area. The seeding effect and its physical mechanism were studied. The results indicate that when seeding fog with salt particles sized 80 μm and at a quantity of 6 gm~(-2) at the fog top, the seeding effect near the ground surface layer is negative in the beginning period, and then a positive seeding effect begins to appear at 18 min, with the best effect appearing at 21 min after seeding operation. The positive effect can last about 35 min. The microphysical mechanism of the warm fog dissipation is because of the evaporation due to the water vapor condensation on the salt particles and coalescence with salt particles.The process of fog water coalescence with salt particles contributed mostly to this warm fog dissipation. Furthermore, two series of sensitivity experiments were performed to study the seeding effect under different seeding amounts and salt particles sizes. The results show that seeding fog with salt particles sized of 80 μm can have the best seeding effect, and the seeding effect is negative when the salt particle size is less than 10 μm. For salt particles sized 80 μm, the best seeding effect, with corresponding visibility of 380 m, can be achieved when the seeding amount is 30 g m~(-2).     

INVESTIGATION ON EFFECTS OF INITIAL SCHEMES FOR BINARY TYPHOONS ROKE AND SONCA IN 2011

Based on the Tropical Region Atmospheric Modeling System for South China Sea (TRAMS), Typhoon Roke (1115) and Sonca (1116) in 2011 which have large forecast errors in numerical operation prediction, have been selected for research focusing on the initial scheme and its influence on forecast. The purpose is to find a clue for model improvement and enhance the performance of the typhoon model. Several initialization schemes have been designed and the corresponding experiments have been done for Typhoon Roke and Sonca. The results show that the forecast error of both typhoons’ track and intensity are less using the initial scheme of relocation and bogus just for the weak Typhoon Sonca, compared with using the scheme for both typhoons. By analysis the influence of the scheme on weak typhoon vortex circulation may be the reason that leads to the improvement. All weak typhoons in 2011 to 2012 are selected for tests. It comes to the conclusion that the initial scheme of relocation and bogus can reduce the error of track and intensity forecast. Besides, the height of cloud top in typhoon vortex constructed by bogus is too high according to weak typhoon. It is feasible to develop a bogus which is suitable for weak typhoon.     

21层大气环流模式IAP AGCM-III的设计及气候数值模拟I.动力框架

设计了IAP (InstituteofAtmosphericPhysics,ChineseAcademyofSciences)AGCM III,对其动力框架作说明和检验 ,时间积分采用改进的非线性迭代法。用Rossby Haurwitz波对框架进行了波型检验、能量检验和波速检验。结果表明 ,非线性迭代 3次的时间积分方案具有较好的稳定性 ,能够有效地抑制短波 ,同时对长波的歪曲较小 ,且时间积分步长可放得较大 ;该框架能够较长时间地保持Rossby Haurwitz 4波波型 ,在积分过程中能够较高精度地保持总有效能量守恒 ;模式计算的Rossby Haurwitz波速为每天西传 1 5个经度 ,这与理伦值很接近。