scholarly journals On the Relationship between Intensity and Rainfall Distribution in Tropical Cyclones Making Landfall over China

2017 ◽  
Vol 56 (10) ◽  
pp. 2883-2901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zifeng Yu ◽  
Yuqing Wang ◽  
Haiming Xu ◽  
Noel Davidson ◽  
Yandie Chen ◽  
...  

AbstractTRMM satellite 3B42 rainfall estimates for 133 landfalling tropical cyclones (TCs) over China during 2001–15 are used to examine the relationship between TC intensity and rainfall distribution. The rain rate of each TC is decomposed into axisymmetric and asymmetric components. The results reveal that, on average, axisymmetric rainfall is closely related to TC intensity. Stronger TCs have higher averaged peak axisymmetric rain rates, more averaged total rain, larger averaged rain areas, higher averaged rain rates, higher averaged amplitudes of the axisymmetric rainfall, and lower amplitudes of wavenumbers 1–4 relative to the total rainfall. Among different TC intensity change categories, rapidly decaying TCs show the most rapid decrease in both the total rainfall and the axisymmetric rainfall relative to the total rain. However, the maximum total rain, maximum rain area, and maximum rain rate are not absolutely dependent on TC intensity, suggesting that stronger TCs do not have systematically higher maximum rain rates than weaker storms. Results also show that the translational speed of TCs has little effect on the asymmetric rainfall distribution in landfalling TCs. The maximum rainfall of both the weaker and stronger TCs is generally located downshear to downshear left. However, when environmental vertical wind shear (VWS) is less than 5 m s−1, the asymmetric rainfall maxima are more frequently located upshear and onshore, suggesting that in weak VWS environments the coastline could have a significant effect on the rainfall asymmetry in landfalling TCs.

MAUSAM ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 481-496
Author(s):  
S. BALACHANDRAN ◽  
B. GEETHA

The precipitation characteristics and spatial rainfall asymmetry in respect of three tropical cyclones (TCs) of Bay of Bengal, viz., NISHA (2008), LAILA (2010) and JAL(2010) that affected coastal Tamil Nadu are studied using TRMM based rain rate data. The analysis is carried out by dividing the life cycle of the TC into various stages of intensification and weakening. Percentage frequency distribution, radial profile and quadrant-wise mean rain rates are determined stage-wise for each TC. Further, spatio-temporal variations in the rainfall asymmetry is studied using Fourier analysis by computing the first order wave number-1 asymmetry around the TC centre. The results indicate a shifting of higher frequency rain rates from higher to lower rain rate side when the TC passes from intensification to weakening stages. The azimuthally averaged mean rain rates indicate a peak rain rate of 4-5 mm/hr over 50-100 km from the TC centre during intensification stages which decreases to a very low rate of about 1 mm/hr during the final stages of weakening. For the same intensity category, the radial profiles of mean rain rates show marked difference between the intensification and weakening stages. The quadrant mean rain rates show large asymmetries in the radial rainfall distribution with more rainfall concentrated in front left quadrant during the stages of intensification. Such TC rainfall asymmetries are shown to be influenced by the environmental vertical wind shear and translational speed of the TC. When the wind shear and storm motion vectors are in the same direction, a dominant down shear left asymmetry is observed. Evolution of wave number-1 asymmetry indicates that, by and large, asymmetry amplitude increases from the centre outwards and a cyclonic (anti-cyclonic) shift during the intensification (weakening) stages of the TCs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 148 (5) ◽  
pp. 2009-2032 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew T. Hazelton ◽  
Xuejin Zhang ◽  
Sundararaman Gopalakrishnan ◽  
William Ramstrom ◽  
Frank Marks ◽  
...  

Abstract The FV3GFS is the current operational Global Forecast System (GFS) at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), which combines a finite-volume cubed sphere dynamical core (FV3) and GFS physics. In this study, FV3GFS is used to gain understanding of rapid intensification (RI) of tropical cyclones (TCs) in shear. The analysis demonstrates the importance of TC structure in a complex system like Hurricane Michael, which intensified to a category 5 hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico despite over 20 kt (10 m s−1) of vertical wind shear. Michael’s RI is examined using a global-nest FV3GFS ensemble with the nest at 3-km resolution. The ensemble shows a range of peak intensities from 77 to 159 kt (40–82 m s−1). Precipitation symmetry, vortex tilt, moisture, and other aspects of Michael’s evolution are compared through composites of stronger and weaker members. The 850–200-hPa vertical shear is 22 kt (11 m s−1) in the mean of both strong and weak members during the early stage. Tilt and moisture are two distinguishing factors between strong and weak members. The relationship between vortex tilt and humidification is complex, and other studies have shown both are important for sheared intensification. Here, it is shown that tilt reduction leads to upshear humidification and is thus a driving factor for intensification. A stronger initial vortex and early evolution of the vortex also appear to be the key to members that are able to resist the sheared environment.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1539-1556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula J. Brown ◽  
Christian D. Kummerow ◽  
David L. Randel

AbstractThe Goddard profiling algorithm (GPROF) is an operational passive microwave retrieval that uses a Bayesian scheme to estimate rainfall. GPROF 2014 retrieves rainfall and hydrometeor vertical profile information based upon a database of profiles constructed to be simultaneously consistent with Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation radar (PR) and TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI) observations. A small number of tropical cyclones are in the current database constructed from one year of TRMM data, resulting in the retrieval performing relatively poorly for these systems, particularly for the highest rain rates. To address this deficiency, a new database focusing specifically on hurricanes but consisting of 9 years of TRMM data is created. The new database and retrieval procedure for TMI and GMI is called Hurricane GPROF. An initial assessment of seven tropical cyclones shows that Hurricane GPROF provides a better estimate of hurricane rain rates than GPROF 2014. Hurricane GPROF rain-rate errors relative to the PR are reduced by 20% compared to GPROF, with improvements in the lowest and highest rain rates especially. Vertical profile retrievals for four hydrometeors are also enhanced, as error is reduced by 30% compared to the GPROF retrieval, relative to PR estimates. When compared to the full database of tropical cyclones, Hurricane GPROF improves the RMSE and MAE of rain-rate estimates over those from GPROF by about 22% and 27%, respectively. Similar improvements are also seen in the overall rain-rate bias for hurricanes in the database, which is reduced from 0.20 to −0.06 mm h−1.


2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
pp. 2905-2922 ◽  
Author(s):  
David E. Kingsmill ◽  
Paul J. Neiman ◽  
Allen B. White

Abstract This study examines the impact of microphysics regime on the relationship between orographic forcing and orographic rain in the coastal mountains of Northern California using >4000 h of data from profiling Doppler radars, rain gauges, and a GPS receiver collected over 10 cool seasons. Orographic forcing is documented by hourly upslope flow, integrated water vapor (IWV), and IWV flux observed along the coast at Bodega Bay (BBY; 15 m MSL). Microphysics regime is inferred in the coastal mountains at Cazadero (CZC; 478 m MSL), where hourly periods of brightband (BB) and nonbrightband (NBB) rain are designated. BB rain is associated with a microphysics regime dominated by the seeder–feeder process while NBB rain is associated with a microphysics regime dominated by the warm-rain process. Mean BBY upslope flow, IWV, and IWV flux are ~16%, ~5%, and ~19% larger, respectively, for NBB rain compared to BB rain, while mean CZC rain rate is ~33% larger for BB rain compared to NBB rain. The orographic enhancement ratio of CZC to BBY rain rate is 3.7 during NBB rain and 2.7 during BB rain. Rain rate at CZC increases as orographic forcing at BBY increases. For a given amount of BBY orographic forcing, mean CZC rain rates are larger for BB rain compared to NBB rain. Correlation coefficients associated with the relationship between CZC rain rate and BBY orographic forcing are smaller for NBB rain relative to BB rain, but these differences are not statistically significant.


2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie N. Stevenson ◽  
Kristen L. Corbosiero ◽  
Mark DeMaria ◽  
Jonathan L. Vigh

Abstract This study seeks to reconcile discrepancies between previous studies analyzing the relationship between lightning and tropical cyclone (TC) intensity change. Inner-core lightning bursts (ICLBs) were identified from 2005 to 2014 in North Atlantic (NA) and eastern North Pacific (ENP) TCs embedded in favorable environments (e.g., vertical wind shear ≤ 10 m s−1; sea surface temperatures ≥ 26.5°C) using data from the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) transformed onto a regular grid with 8-km grid spacing to replicate the expected nadir resolution of the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM). Three hypothesized factors that could impact the 24-h intensity change after a burst were tested: 1) prior intensity change, 2) azimuthal burst location, and 3) radial burst location. Most ICLBs occurred in weak TCs (tropical depressions and tropical storms), and most TCs intensified (remained steady) 24 h after burst onset in the NA (ENP). TCs were more likely to intensify 24 h after an ICLB if they were steady or intensifying prior to burst onset. Azimuthally, 75% of the ICLBs initiated downshear, with 92% of downshear bursts occurring in TCs that remained steady or intensified. Of the ICLBs that initiated or rotated upshear, 2–3 times more were associated with TC intensification than weakening, consistent with recent studies finding more symmetric convection in intensifying TCs. The radial burst location relative to the radius of maximum wind (RMW) provided the most promising result: TCs with an ICLB inside (outside) the RMW were associated with intensification (weakening).


2015 ◽  
Vol 144 (1) ◽  
pp. 225-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie N. Stevenson ◽  
Kristen L. Corbosiero ◽  
Sergio F. Abarca

Abstract As global lightning detection has become more reliable, many studies have analyzed the characteristics of lightning in tropical cyclones (TCs); however, very few studies have examined flashes in eastern North Pacific (ENP) basin TCs. This study uses lightning detected by the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) to explore the relationship between lightning and sea surface temperatures (SSTs), the diurnal cycle, the storm motion and vertical wind shear vectors, and the 24-h intensity change in ENP TCs during 2006–14. The results are compared to storms in the North Atlantic (NA). Higher flash counts were found over warmer SSTs, with 28°–30°C SSTs experiencing the highest 6-hourly flash counts. Most TC lightning flashes occurred at night and during the early morning hours, with minimal activity after local noon. The ENP peak (0800 LST) was slightly earlier than the NA (0900–1100 LST). Despite similar storm motion directions and differing vertical wind shear directions in the two basins, shear dominated the overall azimuthal lightning distribution. Lightning was most often observed downshear left in the inner core (0–100 km) and downshear right in the outer rainbands (100–300 km). A caveat to these relationships were fast-moving ENP TCs with opposing shear and motion vectors, in which lightning peaked downmotion (upshear) instead. Finally, similar to previous studies, higher flash densities in the inner core (outer rainbands) were associated with nonintensifying (intensifying) TCs. This last result constitutes further evidence in the efforts to associate lightning activity to TC intensity forecasting.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Rachna Sok

Tropical cyclones are the most serious meteorological phenomena that hit Bima city in December 2016. The strong winds and heavy precipitation associated with a typhoon significantly affect the weather in this city. The impact of a tropical cyclone on precipitation variability in Bima is studied using rainfall data for analyzing hourly rainfall distribution pattern during the event. Depend on the geographic situation and climate characteristic, the hourly rainfall distribution pattern of one area is different to others area. The research aims to analyze hourly rainfall distribution pattern in the form of the rainfall intensity distribution. This research is conducted using one automatic rainfall gauge in Bima city, West Nusa Tenggara province that obtained from Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD). The results showed that two events of rainfall were recorded. The first rainfall event was on 20th to 21st December 2016 with a total rainfall 191.4 mm. The second rainfall event occurred on 22nd to 23rd December 2016 with a total rainfall 126.2 mm. The rainfall distribution pattern has rainfall intensity peak at 45% of duration with cumulative rainfall reached 70%. It was found there is no common pattern of temporal rainfall distribution for rainfall induced by tropical cyclones.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haoyan Liu

<p>This study investigates the intensity change of binary tropical cyclones (TCs) under the influence of their mutual interaction in an idealized three-dimensional full-physics numerical model with a finest horizontal resolution of 3 km. The two identical TCs merge within the initial separation distance of 600 km.</p><p>Due to the interaction between binary TCs, the intensity evolution presents two weakening stages and an unchanged stage between them. Such intensity change of each one in binary TCs is correlated to the upper-layer vertical wind shear (VWS) caused by the other TC. During the first stage, the upper-layer anticyclone (ULA) of one TC results in the upper-layer VWS and ventilates the warm core of the other TC above the outflow layer, which causes the intensity of the binary TCs decreasing. During the second stage, as the ULA stretches downward and outward, the upper-layer VWS changes to the opposite direction, along with the intensity decreasing first and then increasing. Meanwhile, the intensity of the binary TCs stays unchanged. In the last stage, the binary TCs weaken again as the upper-layer VWS increases to some extent except the merging cases. When the two TCs approach each other before merging, the upper-layer VWS in one TC is almost caused by the upper-layer cyclone and outflow of the other, which induces highly asymmetric structure and weakens the vortex. In addition, the horizontal size of the ULA quantified by the Rossby radius of deformation seems to be a critical separation distance of binary TCs, exceeding which the VWS is small enough to influence the intensity.</p>


2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (12) ◽  
pp. 4605-4616 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dasol Kim ◽  
Chang-Hoi Ho ◽  
Doo-Sun R. Park ◽  
Johnny C. L. Chan ◽  
Youngsun Jung

In this study, the variation of tropical cyclone (TC) rainfall area over the subtropical oceans is investigated using the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission precipitation data collected from 1998 to 2014, with a focus on its relationship with environmental conditions. In the subtropics, higher moving speed and larger vertical wind shear significantly contribute to an increase in TC rainfall area by making horizontal rainfall distribution more asymmetric, while sea surface temperature rarely affects the fluctuation of TC rainfall area. This relationship between TC rainfall area and environmental conditions in the subtropics is almost opposite to that in the tropics. It is suggested that, in the subtropics, unlike the tropics, dynamic environmental conditions are likely more crucial to varying TC rainfall area than thermodynamic environmental ones.


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