Variation of turbulence in the marine boundary layer over the Arabian Sea during indian southwest monsoon (MONEX 79)

Analysis of high frequency (20 Hz) turbulence data collected from low level flights by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Electra aircraft over the central Arabian Sea on 20 and 24 June, 1979 as part of MONEX 79 indicates the influence of the Somali Jet on boundary-layer turbulence. Different stages of monsoon development were evident on the two observation days from mean boundary-layer profiles. However, turbulence statistics of wind speed components and temperature in the monsoon boundary layer for both days are generally greater than those observed in laboratory experiments or tropical and trade wind boundary layers in which a strong jet was not present. Analysis of high frequency wind, temperature and humidity data was made to obtain fluxes of momentum and heat. Magnitudes of the sensible and latent heat fluxes are three to five times larger than the values observed over the monsoon boundary layer over the Bay of Bengal. The turbulent kinetic energy budget over the Arabian Sea for 24 June indicates the importance of buoyancy, and to a lesser extent shear as the dominant term. Dissipation serves as the primary sink term.