Observed Impact of Atmospheric Aerosols on the Surface Energy Budget

2013 ◽  
Vol 17 (14) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison L. Steiner ◽  
Dori Mermelstein ◽  
Susan J. Cheng ◽  
Tracy E. Twine ◽  
Andrew Oliphant

Abstract Atmospheric aerosols scatter and potentially absorb incoming solar radiation, thereby reducing the total amount of radiation reaching the surface and increasing the fraction that is diffuse. The partitioning of incoming energy at the surface into sensible heat flux and latent heat flux is postulated to change with increasing aerosol concentrations, as an increase in diffuse light can reach greater portions of vegetated canopies. This can increase photosynthesis and transpiration rates in the lower canopy and potentially decrease the ratio of sensible to latent heat for the entire canopy. Here, half-hourly and hourly surface fluxes from six Flux Network (FLUXNET) sites in the coterminous United States are evaluated over the past decade (2000–08) in conjunction with satellite-derived aerosol optical depth (AOD) to determine if atmospheric aerosols systematically influence sensible and latent heat fluxes. Satellite-derived AOD is used to classify days as high or low AOD and establish the relationship between aerosol concentrations and the surface energy fluxes. High AOD reduces midday net radiation by 6%–65% coupled with a 9%–30% decrease in sensible and latent heat fluxes, although not all sites exhibit statistically significant changes. The partitioning between sensible and latent heat varies between ecosystems, with two sites showing a greater decrease in latent heat than sensible heat (Duke Forest and Walker Branch), two sites showing equivalent reductions (Harvard Forest and Bondville), and one site showing a greater decrease in sensible heat than latent heat (Morgan–Monroe). These results suggest that aerosols trigger an ecosystem-dependent response to surface flux partitioning, yet the environmental drivers for this response require further exploration.

Atmosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 299
Author(s):  
Noman Ali Buttar ◽  
Hu Yongguang ◽  
Josef Tanny ◽  
M Waqar Akram ◽  
Abdul Shabbir

Precise estimation of surface-atmosphere exchange is a major challenge in micrometeorology. Previous literature presented the eddy covariance (EC) as the most reliable method for the measurements of such fluxes. Nevertheless, the EC technique is quite expensive and complex, hence other simpler methods are sought. One of these methods is Flux-Variance (FV). The FV method estimates sensible heat flux (H) using high frequency (~10Hz) air temperature measurements by a fine wire thermocouple. Additional measurements of net radiation (Rn) and soil heat flux (G) allow the derivation of latent heat flux (LE) as the residual of the energy balance equation. In this study, the Flux Variance method was investigated, and the results were compared against eddy covariance measurements. The specific goal of the present study was to assess the performance of the FV method for the estimation of surface fluxes along a variable fetch. Experiment was carried out in a tea garden; an EC system measured latent and sensible heat fluxes and five fine-wire thermocouples were installed towards the wind dominant direction at different distances (fetch) of TC1 = 170 m, TC2 = 165 m, TC3 = 160 m, TC4 = 155 m and TC5 = 150 m from the field edge. Footprint analysis was employed to examine the effect of temperature measurement position on the ratio between 90% footprint and measurement height. Results showed a good agreement between FV and EC measurements of sensible heat flux, with all regression coefficients (R2) larger than 0.6; the sensor at 170 m (TC1), nearest to the EC system, had highest R2 = 0.86 and lowest root mean square error (RMSE = 25 Wm−2). The estimation of LE at TC1 was also in best agreement with eddy covariance, with the highest R2 = 0.90. The FV similarity constant varied along the fetch within the range 2.2–2.4.


Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 322
Author(s):  
Francesc Castellví ◽  
Pedro Gavilán

Often in agrometeorology the instrumentation required to estimate turbulent surface fluxes must be installed at sites where fetch is not sufficient for a sector of wind directions. For different integrated flux-footprints (IFFP) thresholds and taking as a reference the half-hourly latent heat fluxes (LE) measured with a large weighing lysimeter (LELys), the eddy covariance (EC) method and two methods based on surface renewal (SR) analysis to estimate LE were tested over short fescue grass. One method combined SR with the flux-gradient (profile) relationship, SR-P method, and the other with the dissipation method, SR-D method. When LE was estimated using traces of air moisture, good performances were obtained using the EC and the SR-P methods for samples with IFFP higher than 85%. However, the closest LE estimates were obtained using the residual method. For IFFP higher than 50%, the residual method combined with the sensible heat flux estimates determined using the SR-P method performed close to LELys and using the SR-D method good estimates were obtained for accumulated LELys. To estimate the sensible heat flux, the SR-D method can be recommended for day-to-day use by farmers because it is friendly and affordable.


2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Westermann ◽  
J. Lüers ◽  
M. Langer ◽  
K. Piel ◽  
J. Boike

Abstract. Independent measurements of radiation, sensible and latent heat fluxes and the ground heat flux are used to describe the annual cycle of the surface energy budget at a high-arctic permafrost site on Svalbard. During summer, the net short-wave radiation is the dominant energy source, while well developed turbulent processes and the heat flux in the ground lead to a cooling of the surface. About 15% of the net radiation is consumed by the seasonal thawing of the active layer in July and August. The Bowen ratio is found to vary between 0.25 and 2, depending on water content of the uppermost soil layer. During the polar night in winter, the net long-wave radiation is the dominant energy loss channel for the surface, which is mainly compensated by the sensible heat flux and, to a lesser extent, by the ground heat flux, which originates from the refreezing of the active layer. The average annual sensible heat flux of −6.9 Wm−2 is composed of strong positive fluxes in July and August, while negative fluxes dominate during the rest of the year. With 6.8 Wm−2, the latent heat flux more or less compensates the sensible heat flux in the annual average. Strong evaporation occurs during the snow melt period and particularly during the snow-free period in summer and fall. When the ground is covered by snow, latent heat fluxes through sublimation of snow are recorded, but are insignificant for the average surface energy budget. The near-surface atmospheric stratification is found to be predominantly unstable to neutral, when the ground is snow-free, and stable to neutral for snow-covered ground. Due to long-lasting near-surface inversions in winter, an average temperature difference of approximately 3 K exists between the air temperature at 10 m height and the surface temperature of the snow. As such comprehensive data sets are sparse for the Arctic, they are of great value to improve process understanding and support modeling efforts on the present-day and future arctic climate and permafrost conditions.


2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 631-680 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Westermann ◽  
J. Lüers ◽  
M. Langer ◽  
K. Piel ◽  
J. Boike

Abstract. Independent measurements of radiation, sensible and latent heat fluxes and the ground heat flux are used to describe the annual cycle of the surface energy budget at a high-arctic permafrost site on Svalbard. During summer, the net short-wave radiation is the dominant energy source, while well developed turbulent processes and the heat flux in the ground lead to a cooling of the surface. About 15% of the net radiation is consumed by the seasonal thawing of the active layer in July and August. The Bowen ratio is found to vary between 0.25 and 2, depending on water content of the uppermost soil layer. During the polar night in winter, the net long-wave radiation is the dominant energy loss channel for the surface, which is mainly compensated by the sensible heat flux and, to a lesser extent, by the ground heat flux, which originates from the refreezing of the active layer. The average annual sensible heat flux of −6.9 Wm−2 is composed of strong positive fluxes in July and August, while negative fluxes dominate during the rest of the year. With 6.8 Wm−2, the latent heat flux more or less compensates the sensible heat flux in the annual average. Strong evaporation occurs during the snow melt period and particularly during the snow-free period in summer and fall. When the ground is covered by snow, latent heat fluxes through sublimation of snow are recorded, but are insignificant for the average surface energy budget. The near-surface atmospheric stratification is found to be predominantly unstable to neutral, when the ground is snow-free, and stable to neutral for snow-covered ground. Due to long-lasting near-surface inversions in winter, an average temperature difference of approximately 3 K exists between the air temperature at 10 m height and the surface temperature of the snow.


2008 ◽  
Vol 21 (22) ◽  
pp. 5925-5941 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Sahlée ◽  
Ann-Sofi Smedman ◽  
Anna Rutgersson ◽  
Ulf Högström

Abstract Recent research has found that boundary layer turbulence changes its organization as the stratification approaches neutral from the unstable side. When the thermal forcing weakens in combination with wind speed above approximately 10 m s−1, detached eddies are formed in the upper part of the surface layer. These eddies effectively transport drier and colder air from aloft to the surface as they move downward, thereby enhancing the surface fluxes of sensible and latent heat. This effect has been observed over both land and sea; that is, it is not dependent on the nature of the underlying surface. Here the authors perform a sensitivity study of how this reorganization of the turbulence structure influences the global air–sea heat fluxes. Using modified bulk formulations incorporating this effect, the magnitude of the enhancement in a climatic sense was estimated by the use of 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40) data in the bulk formulas. It is found that for the 1979–2001 period, the global increase of the latent and sensible heat fluxes over the ice-free oceans is 3.6 and 1.2 W m−2, respectively. These numbers suggest that this effect is of some significance. The results also indicate that the regional and seasonal variability may be large. The largest annual increases are found over the southern oceans between 30° and 60°S where the sensible heat flux increases by 2.3 W m−2 and the latent heat flux by 6.5 W m−2. Ocean areas close to the equator experience almost no increase, whereas the latent heat flux from the Arabian Sea during the monsoon period is enhanced by 11.5 W m−2.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 2547-2564
Author(s):  
Georg Lackner ◽  
Daniel F. Nadeau ◽  
Florent Domine ◽  
Annie-Claude Parent ◽  
Gonzalo Leonardini ◽  
...  

AbstractRising temperatures in the southern Arctic region are leading to shrub expansion and permafrost degradation. The objective of this study is to analyze the surface energy budget (SEB) of a subarctic shrub tundra site that is subject to these changes, on the east coast of Hudson Bay in eastern Canada. We focus on the turbulent heat fluxes, as they have been poorly quantified in this region. This study is based on data collected by a flux tower using the eddy covariance approach and focused on snow-free periods. Furthermore, we compare our results with those from six Fluxnet sites in the Arctic region and analyze the performance of two land surface models, SVS and ISBA, in simulating soil moisture and turbulent heat fluxes. We found that 23% of the net radiation was converted into latent heat flux at our site, 35% was used for sensible heat flux, and about 15% for ground heat flux. These results were surprising considering our site was by far the wettest site among those studied, and most of the net radiation at the other Arctic sites was consumed by the latent heat flux. We attribute this behavior to the high hydraulic conductivity of the soil (littoral and intertidal sediments), typical of what is found in the coastal regions of the eastern Canadian Arctic. Land surface models overestimated the surface water content of those soils but were able to accurately simulate the turbulent heat flux, particularly the sensible heat flux and, to a lesser extent, the latent heat flux.


2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (258) ◽  
pp. 543-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsey Nicholson ◽  
Ivana Stiperski

AbstractWe present the first direct comparison of turbulence conditions measured simultaneously over exposed ice and a 0.08 m thick supraglacial debris cover on Suldenferner, a small glacier in the Italian Alps. Surface roughness, sensible heat fluxes (~20–50 W m−2), latent heat fluxes (~2–10 W m−2), topology and scale of turbulence are similar over both glacier surface types during katabatic and synoptically disturbed conditions. Exceptions are sunny days when buoyant convection becomes significant over debris-covered ice (sensible heat flux ~ −100 W m−2; latent heat flux ~ −30 W m−2) and prevailing katabatic conditions are rapidly broken down even over this thin debris cover. The similarity in turbulent properties implies that both surface types can be treated the same in terms of boundary layer similarity theory. The differences in turbulence between the two surface types on this glacier are dominated by the radiative and thermal contrasts, thus during sunny days debris cover alters both the local surface turbulent energy fluxes and the glacier component of valley circulation. These variations under different flow conditions should be accounted for when distributing temperature fields for modeling applications over partially debris-covered glaciers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. e39
Author(s):  
Rubmara Ketzer Oliveira ◽  
Luciano Sobral Fraga Junior ◽  
Larissa Brêtas Moura ◽  
Debora Regina Roberti ◽  
Felipe Gustavo Pilau

Brazil is the main sugarcane producer in the world, which is intended for various purposes, from food to power generation. Soybean cultivation in areas of sugarcane under renewal has been growing progressively in Brazil. Quantifying energy fluxes at different stages of this process is essential for better management. The work was carried out in Piracicaba city, with the objective of analyzing the behavior of energy fluxes and the closing of the energy balance in a sugarcane renewal area with a fallow period followed by soybean cultivation. The latent and sensitive heat fluxes were obtained with the “Eddy covariance” method. The closing of the energy balance in the fallow period with straw-covered uncovered and soybean-cultivated soil presented a correlation coefficient of 0.88, 0.78 and 0.71, respectively. In the period without cultivation, the sensible heat flux was predominant in relation to the latent heat flux, varying according to the rainfall regime. The presence of straw under the soil in the fallow period affected the latent heat flux. With soybean cultivation, the latent heat flux surpassed the sensible heat flux.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maoshan Li ◽  
Lingzhi Wang ◽  
Wei Fu ◽  
Ming Gong ◽  
Na Chang

<p><strong><sup> </sup></strong><sup>Different underlying surfaces have differing diversities, complex compositions and uneven distributions and contribute to diverse and complex land surfaces. As the main input factor for atmospheric energy, the surface greatly affects the various interactions between the ground and the atmosphere and even plays a key role in local areas on the Tibetan Plateau. The characteristics of the atmospheric boundary layer structure of the plateau and the land-atmosphere interaction under the control of different wind fields in the south branch of the westerly wind and the plateau monsoon are discussed. Results show that the height of the atmospheric boundary layer at each station under the westerly south branch wind field is higher than that under the summer monsoon wind field. The height of the convective boundary layers of Mount Everest, Nyingchi, Nagqu and Shiquan River in the southwest wind field are 3250 m, 2250 m, 2760 m and 3500 m. while the height of the convective boundary layers of Mount Everest, Nyingchi, Nagqu and Shiquan River under the plateau monsoon field are 2000 m, 2100 m, 1650 m and 2000 m. The specific humidity of the surface layer at all site is larger on July than it on other months. The specific humidity of the surface layer in Linzhi area is larger than that of the other three regions, and it reaches 12.88 g·kg-1 at the maximum. The wind direction on Mount Everest over 1200 m is dominated by westerly winds in May and October. The wind direction on Nyingchi above 1500 m is dominated by westerly winds in May and October, and in July, winds above 1200 m is dominated by southerly winds. The wind direction of Shiquan River in May and October is dominated by west-southwest wind, and the wind direction of Shiquan River in July is dominated by west-northwest wind. Secondly, variation characteristics of surface fluxes were analyzed by using the eddy covariance observations from four stations of Pailong(entrance of Canyon), Danka (middle of Canyon), Kabu (end of Canyon) , and Motuo (end of Canyon) in the southeastern gorge area of Tibet. The changing trend of monthly averaged daily sensible heat flux at Kabu station is fluctuating. Sensible heat flux and latent heat flux at Motuo station have the same variation characteristics. Latent heat fluxes increase first and then decrease at all four stations. Seasonal variations of soil heat flux are obvious, characterizing positive values in spring and summer and negative values in autumn and winter. The diurnal variation intensity of net radiation flux is summer>spring>autumn>winter.   Energy closure rates of Danka, Pailong, Motuo, and Kabu stations are 70.86%, 68.91%, 69.29%, and 67.23%, respectively. Latent heat fluxes and soil heat fluxes increase, and sensible heat fluxes decrease as increasing precipitation at the four stations. The sensible heat flux and soil heat flux respond synchronously to precipitation changes, and the changes in latent heat have a significant lag in response to precipitation changes.</sup></p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (24) ◽  
pp. 2899
Author(s):  
Nan Ge ◽  
Lei Zhong ◽  
Yaoming Ma ◽  
Meilin Cheng ◽  
Xian Wang ◽  
...  

Land surface heat fluxes consist of the net radiation flux, soil heat flux, sensible heat flux, and latent heat flux. The estimation of these fluxes is essential to the study of energy transfer in land–atmosphere systems. In this paper, Landsat 7 ETM+ SLC-on data were applied to estimate the land surface heat fluxes on the northern Tibetan Plateau using the SEBS (surface energy balance system) model, in combination with the calculation of field measurements at CAMP/Tibet (Coordinated Enhanced Observing Period (CEOP) Asia–Australia Monsoon Project on the Tibetan Plateau) automatic weather stations based on the combinatory method (CM) for comparison. The root mean square errors between the satellite estimations and the CM calculations for the net radiation flux, soil heat flux, sensible heat flux, and latent heat flux were 49.2 W/m2, 46.3 W/m2, 68.2 W/m2, and 54.9 W/m2, respectively. The results reveal that land surface heat fluxes all present significant seasonal variability. Apart from the sensible heat flux, the satellite-estimated net radiation flux, soil heat flux, and latent heat flux exhibited a trend of summer > spring > autumn > winter. In summer, spring, autumn, and winter, respectively, the median values of the net radiation flux (631.8 W/m2, 583.0 W/m2, 404.4 W/m2, 314.3 W/m2), soil heat flux (40.9 W/m2, 37.9 W/m2, 26.1 W/m2, 20.5 W/m2), sensible heat flux (252.7 W/m2, 219.5 W/m2, 221.4 W/m2, 204.8 W/m2), and latent heat flux (320.1 W/m2, 298.3 W/m2, 142.3 W/m2, 75.5 W/m2) exhibited distinct seasonal diversity. From November to April, the in situ sensible heat flux is higher than the latent heat flux; the opposite is true between June and September, leaving May and October as transitional months. For water bodies, alpine meadows and other main underlying surface types, sensible and latent heat flux generally present contrasting and complementary spatial distributions. Due to the 15–60 m resolution of the Landsat 7 ETM+ data, the distribution of land surface heat fluxes can be used as an indicator of complex underlying surface types over the northern Tibetan Plateau.


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