High-latitude precipitation: Snowfall regimes at two distinct sites in Scandinavia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia A. Shates ◽  
Claire Pettersen ◽  
Tristan S. L’Ecuyer ◽  
Steve J. Cooper ◽  
Mark S. Kulie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Low Pressure ◽  
Small Particles ◽  
Radar Echo ◽  
High Concentrations ◽  
Remote Sensing Methods ◽  
Rain Radar

AbstractThe prevailing snowfall regimes at two Scandinavian sites, Haukeliseter, Norway and Kiruna, Sweden, are documented using ground-based in-situ and remote sensing methods. Micro Rain Radar (MRR) profiles indicate three distinct snowfall regimes occur at both sites: shallow, deep, and intermittent snowfall. The shallow snowfall regime produces the lowest mean snowfall rates and radar echo tops are confined below 1.5 km above ground level (AGL). Shallow snowfall occurs under areas of large scale subsidence with a moist boundary layer and dry air aloft. The atmospheric ridge coinciding with shallow snowfall is highly anomalous over Haukeliseter, but is more common in Kiruna where shallow snowfall was frequently observed. The shallow snowfall particle size distributions (PSDs) are broad with lower particle concentrations than other regimes, especially small particles. Deep snowfall events exhibit MRR profiles that extend above 2 km AGL, and tend to be associated with weak low pressure and high relative humidity throughout the troposphere. The PSDs in deep events are narrower with high concentrations of small particles. Increasing MRR reflectivity towards the surface suggests aggregation as a possible growth process during deep snowfall events. The heaviest mean snowfall rates are associated with intermittent events that are characterized by deep MRR profiles, but have variations in intensity and height. The intermittent regime is associated with anomalous, deep low pressure along the coast of Norway, and enhanced relative humidity at lower levels. The PSDs reveal high concentrations of small and large particles. The analysis reveals that there are unique characteristics of shallow, deep, and intermittent snowfall regimes that are common between the sites.

scholarly journals Freezing thresholds and cirrus cloud formation mechanisms inferred from in situ measurements of relative humidity

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 1791-1806 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Haag ◽  
B. Kärcher ◽  
J. Ström ◽  
A. Minikin ◽  
U. Lohmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Global Climate Model ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Cirrus Clouds ◽  
Formation Mechanisms ◽  
Cirrus Cloud ◽  
Homogeneous Freezing

Abstract. Factors controlling the microphysical link between distributions of relative humidity above ice saturation in the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere and cirrus clouds are examined with the help of microphysical trajectory simulations. Our findings are related to results from aircraft measurements and global model studies. We suggest that the relative humidities at which ice crystals form in the atmosphere can be inferred from in situ measurements of water vapor and temperature close to, but outside of, cirrus clouds. The comparison with concomitant measurements performed inside cirrus clouds provides a clue to freezing mechanisms active in cirrus. The analysis of field data taken at northern and southern midlatitudes in fall 2000 reveals distinct differences in cirrus cloud freezing thresholds. Homogeneous freezing is found to be the most likely mechanism by which cirrus form at southern hemisphere midlatitudes. The results provide evidence for the existence of heterogeneous freezing in cirrus in parts of the polluted northern hemisphere, but do not suggest that cirrus clouds in this region form exclusively on heterogeneous ice nuclei, thereby emphasizing the crucial importance of homogeneous freezing. The key features of distributions of upper tropospheric relative humidity simulated by a global climate model are shown to be in general agreement with both, microphysical simulations and field observations, delineating a feasible method to include and validate ice supersaturation in other large-scale atmospheric models, in particular chemistry-transport and weather forecast models.

scholarly journals Measurements of precipitation in Dumont d'Urville, Adélie Land, East Antarctica

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1797-1811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacopo Grazioli ◽  
Christophe Genthon ◽  
Brice Boudevillain ◽  
Claudio Duran-Alarcon ◽  
Massimo Del Guasta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Austral Summer ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Blowing Snow ◽  
Climatological Data ◽  
Weather Forecasts ◽  
First Results ◽  
Terre Adélie ◽  
Intensive Observation ◽  
Rain Radar

Abstract. The first results of a campaign of intensive observation of precipitation in Dumont d'Urville, Antarctica, are presented. Several instruments collected data from November 2015 to February 2016 or longer, including a polarimetric radar (MXPol), a Micro Rain Radar (MRR), a weighing gauge (Pluvio2), and a Multi-Angle Snowflake Camera (MASC). These instruments collected the first ground-based measurements of precipitation in the region of Adélie Land (Terre Adélie), including precipitation microphysics. Microphysical observations during the austral summer 2015/2016 showed that, close to the ground level, aggregates are the dominant hydrometeor type, together with small ice particles (mostly originating from blowing snow), and that riming is a recurring process. Eleven percent of the measured particles were fully developed graupel, and aggregates had a mean riming degree of about 30 %. Spurious precipitation in the Pluvio2 measurements in windy conditions, leading to phantom accumulations, is observed and partly removed through synergistic use of MRR data. The yearly accumulated precipitation of snow (300 m above ground), obtained by means of a local conversion relation of MRR data, trained on the Pluvio2 measurement of the summer period, is estimated to be 815 mm of water equivalent, with a confidence interval ranging between 739.5 and 989 mm. Data obtained in previous research from satellite-borne radars, and the ERA-Interim reanalysis of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) provide lower yearly totals: 655 mm for ERA-Interim and 679 mm for the climatological data over DDU. ERA-Interim overestimates the occurrence of low-intensity precipitation events especially in summer, but it compensates for them by underestimating the snowfall amounts carried by the most intense events. Overall, this paper provides insightful examples of the added values of precipitation monitoring in Antarctica with a synergistic use of in situ and remote sensing measurements.

scholarly journals Possible impacts of climate change on fog in the Arctic and subpolar North Atlantic

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-43
Author(s):  
Richard E. Danielson ◽  
Minghong Zhang ◽  
William A. Perrie
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Ensemble Member ◽  
Single Step ◽  
Dew Point ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Point Temperature ◽  
Dew Point Temperature

Abstract. A conventional parameterization of midlatitude warm fog occurrence, based on in situ observations, is employed to estimate marine surface visibility in the Arctic and North Atlantic from three datasets: an ensemble member of the Hadley Earth System (HadGEM2) model and a nested regional WRF simulation that follow historical and future emissions scenarios for 1979–2100, and the ERA-Interim reanalysis for 1979–2004. Over large scales (of an entire year and region), all three gridded datasets agree well in terms of variables like surface air temperature, whose systematic differences seem small by comparison with its predicted change over the course of this century. On the other hand, systematic differences are more apparent in large-scale estimates of relative humidity and visibility. Large differences are attributed to a sensitivity to representation bias that is inherent in the formulation of each individual model and analysis. Two simple linear calibrations are examined, both of which assume that an in situ based parameterization is broadly consistent with the use of marine (ICOADS) observations of air and dew point temperature as an error-free reference. A single-step calibration is considered that takes the mean and variance of ICOADS frequency distributions as a reference. A two-step calibration is also performed in which ICOADS collocations are taken as a reference for the ERA reanalysis, which in turn is taken as a large-scale reference for the 1979–2004 HadGEM2 and WRF simulations. Both linear calibrations are applied (locally in time and space to air and dew point temperature) to the future climate scenarios of HadGEM2 and WRF. Although ICOADS observations are not error-free and parameterized visibility estimates are unlikely to capture much more than half the variance found in observations, attempts are made to present consistent regional changes in the frequency of high relative humidity, as a proxy for warm fog occurrence. The large-scale decrease in visibility over the 21st century is in the range of 8 %–12 % in the Arctic and 0 %–5 % in the North Atlantic.

scholarly journals On the cross-tropopause transport of water by tropical convective overshoots: a mesoscale modelling study constrained by in-situ observations during TRO-Pico field campaign in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abhinna K. Behera ◽  
Emmanuel D. Riviere ◽  
Sergey M. Khaykin ◽  
Virginie Marecal ◽  
Melanie Ghysels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Mesoscale Model ◽  
Deep Convection ◽  
Grid Point ◽  
Meteorological Model ◽  
Brazilian Version ◽  
Radar Echo ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Horizontal Grid

Abstract. Deep convection overshooting the lowermost stratosphere is well known for its role in the local stratospheric water vapour (WV) budget. While it is seldom the case, local enhancements of WV associated with stratospheric overshoots are often published. Nevertheless, one debatable topic prevails on the global impact of this event with respect to the temperature-driven dehydration of air parcels entering the stratosphere. As a first step, it is crucial to quantify their role at a local scale before assessing their impact at a large-scale in a meteorological model. It would lead to a forcing scheme for overshoots in the global models. This paper reports on the local enhancements of WV linked to stratospheric overshoots, observed during the TRO-Pico campaign conducted in March 2012 in Bauru, Brazil, using the BRAMS (Brazilian version of RAMS) mesoscale model. Since numerical simulation depends on the choice of several preferred parameters, each having its uncertainties, we vary the microphysics or the vertical resolution while simulating the overshoots. Thus, we produce a set of simulations illustrating the possible variations in representing the stratospheric overshoots. To resolve better the stratospheric hydration, we opt for simulations with the 800-m-horizontal-grid-point presentation. Next, we validate these simulations against the Bauru S-band radar echo tops and the TRO-Pico balloon-borne observations of WV and particles. Two of the three simulations' setups yield results compatible with the TRO-Pico observations. From these two simulations, we determine approximately 333 t to 2000 t of WV mass prevailing in the stratosphere due to an overshooting plume depending on the simulation setup. About 70 % of the ice mass remains between the 380 K to 385 K isentropic levels. The overshooting top comprises pristine ice and snow, while aggregates only play a role just above the tropopause. Interestingly, the horizontal cross-section of the overshooting top is about 450 km2 at 380 K isentrope, which is similar to the horizontal-grid-point resolution of a simulation that cannot compute overshoots explicitly. These results could establish a forcing scheme of overshooting hydration or dehydration in a large-scale simulation.

scholarly journals Freezing thresholds and cirrus cloud formation mechanisms inferred from in situ measurements of relative humidity

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 3267-3299 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Haag ◽  
B. Kärcher ◽  
J. Ström ◽  
A. Minikin ◽  
U. Lohmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Global Climate Model ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Cirrus Clouds ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Formation Mechanisms ◽  
Cirrus Cloud

Abstract. Factors controlling the distribution of relative humidity above ice saturation in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere in the presence of cirrus clouds are examined with the help of microphysical trajectory simulations using a box model. Our findings are related to results from recent field campaigns and global model studies. We suggest that the relative humidities at which ice crystals form in the atmosphere can be inferred from in situ measurements of water vapor and temperature close to, but outside of, cirrus clouds. The comparison with similar measurements performed inside cirrus clouds provides a clue to freezing mechanisms active in cirrus. The comparison with field data reveals distinct interhemispheric differences in cirrus cloud freezing thresholds. Combining the present findings with recent results addressing the frequency distributions of updraft speeds and cirrus ice crystal number densities (Kärcher and Ström, 2993} provides evidence for the existence of complex heterogeneous freezing mechanisms in cirrus, at least in the polluted northern hemisphere, and further emphasizes the key role of gravity wave-induced dynamical variability in vertical air motion at the mesoscale. The key features of distributions of upper tropospheric relative humidity simulated by a global climate model are shown to be in general agreement with both, microphysical simulations and field observations, delineating a feasible method to include and validate ice supersaturation in other large-scale models of the atmosphere, in particular chemistry-transport and weather forecast models.

scholarly journals A close up of daily temperature and moisture in two Mexican high-elevation forests

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arian Correa-Díaz ◽  
Armando Gómez-Guerrero ◽  
Efrain Velasco-Bautista
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Average Temperature ◽  
In Situ Data ◽  
Time Variations ◽  
High Elevation Forests ◽  
Climatic Information ◽  
High Uncertainty

The scarcity of meteorological stations and the strong need for climatic information in alpine forests require the use of large-scale climatic algorithms but the lack of in situ information produces high uncertainty on their suitability. In this study, we used linear mixed models to study the topographic effect (elevation and aspect) and time variations (from hourly to monthly) on temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH) with a 5-year instrumental database. Furthermore, we compared climatic information from a geographical algorithm and our in-situ data. Our data covered two mountains (Tláloc-TLA and Jocotitlán-JOC, State of México), four elevation belts (from 3500 m to 3900 m a.s.l.), and two aspects (Northwest and Southwest). We found differences for average temperature (TLA = 7.56 °C ± 0.03 °C and JOC = 6.98 °C ± 0.02 °C), and relative humidity between mountains (TLA = 69.3% ± 0.12% and JOC = 72.5% ± 0.13%,). The most significant variables explaining T were the elevation (Δ= -0.36 °C by 100 m) and aspect, while the aspect was relevant for RH. May was the warmest month (9.50 °C ± 0.10 °C for average temperature) while September the wettest for both mountains (85.1% ± 0.30% and 87.4% ± 0.25 % RH, respectively). Despite the higher correlations between climatic sources (up to r = 0.83), the geographical algorithm overestimates T and underestimates RH. We propose that when climatic information from geographical algorithms is used in alpine forests, calibrations are needed whenever possible with in situ information.

scholarly journals A Composite Analysis of Snowfall Modes from Four Winter Seasons in Marquette, Michigan

2020 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Pettersen ◽  
Mark S. Kulie ◽  
Larry F. Bliven ◽  
Aronne J. Merrelli ◽  
Walter A. Petersen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
High Surface ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Size Distributions ◽  
Surface Winds ◽  
Particle Size Distributions ◽  
Small Particles ◽  
Cold Temperatures

AbstractPresented are four winter seasons of data from an enhanced precipitation instrument suite based at the National Weather Service (NWS) Office in Marquette (MQT), Michigan (250–500 cm of annual snow accumulation). In 2014 the site was augmented with a Micro Rain Radar (MRR) and a Precipitation Imaging Package (PIP). MRR observations are utilized to partition large-scale synoptically driven (deep) and surface-forced (shallow) snow events. Coincident PIP and NWS MQT meteorological surface observations illustrate different characteristics with respect to snow event category. Shallow snow events are often extremely shallow, with MRR-indicated precipitation heights of less than 1500 m above ground level. Large vertical reflectivity gradients indicate efficient particle growth, and increased boundary layer turbulence inferred from observations of spectral width implies increased aggregation in shallow snow events. Shallow snow events occur 2 times as often as deep events; however, both categories contribute approximately equally to estimated annual accumulation. PIP measurements reveal distinct regime-dependent snow microphysical differences, with shallow snow events having broader particle size distributions and comparatively fewer small particles and deep snow events having narrower particle size distributions and comparatively more small particles. In addition, coincident surface meteorological measurements indicate that most shallow snow events are associated with surface winds originating from the northwest (over Lake Superior), cold temperatures, and relatively high surface pressures, which are characteristics that are consistent with cold-air outbreaks. Deep snow events have meteorologically distinct conditions that are accordant with midlatitude cyclones and frontal structures, with mostly southwest surface winds, warmer temperatures approaching freezing, and lower surface pressures.

scholarly journals H<sub>2</sub> vertical profiles in the continental boundary layer: measurements at the Cabauw tall tower in The Netherlands

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (13) ◽  
pp. 6425-6443 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. E. Popa ◽  
A. T. Vermeulen ◽  
W. C. M. van den Bulk ◽  
P. A. C. Jongejan ◽  
A. M. Batenburg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Vertical Profiles ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Soil Uptake ◽  
Sampling Height ◽  
Tall Tower

Abstract. In-situ, quasi-continuous measurements of atmospheric hydrogen (H2) have been performed since October 2007 at the Cabauw tall tower station in the Netherlands. Mole fractions of H2, CO and several greenhouse gases are determined simultaneously in air sampled successively at four heights, between 20 and 200 m above ground level. 222Rn measurements are performed in air sampled at 20 and 200 m. This H2 dataset represents the first in-situ, quasi-continuous long-term measurement series of vertical profiles of H2 in the lower continental boundary layer. Seasonal cycles are present at all heights in both H2 and CO, and their amplitude varies with the sampling height. The seasonality is evident in both the "baseline" values and in the short term (diurnal to synoptic time scales) variability, the latter being significantly larger during winter. The observed H2 short term signals and vertical gradients are in many cases well correlated to other species, especially to CO. On the other hand, H2 has at times a unique behaviour, due to its particular distribution of sources and sinks. Our estimation for the regional H2 soil uptake flux, using the radon tracer method, is (−1.89 ± 0.26) × 10−5 g/(m2 h), significantly smaller than other recent results from Europe. H2/CO ratios of the traffic emissions computed from our data, with an average of 0.54 ± 0.07 mol:mol, are larger and more variable than estimated in some of the previous studies in Europe. This difference can be explained by a different driving regime, due to the frequent traffic jams in the influence area of Cabauw. The H2/CO ratios of the large scale pollution events have an average of 0.36 ± 0.05 mol:mol; these ratios were observed to slightly increase with sampling height, possibly due to a stronger influence of soil uptake at the lower sampling heights.

SREM observation of the interaction between the in-situ deposited Pd small particles and MgO cleavage surface

1986 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 382-383
Author(s):  
H.-J. Ou
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Small Particle ◽  
Small Particles ◽  
Cleavage Surface ◽  
Metallic Particles ◽  
Microscopy Technique ◽  
Ceramic Surfaces ◽  
Reflection Electron Microscopy ◽  
New Perspective

The understanding of the interactions between the small metallic particles and ceramic surfaces has been studied by many catalyst scientists. We had developed Scanning Reflection Electron Microscopy technique to study surface structure of MgO hulk cleaved surface and the interaction with the small particle of metals. Resolutions of 10Å has shown the periodic array of surface atomic steps on MgO. The SREM observation of the interaction between the metallic particles and the surface may provide a new perspective on such processes.

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