Atmospheric Wake of Madeira: First Aerial Observations and Numerical Simulations

2015 ◽  
Vol 72 (12) ◽  
pp. 4755-4776 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanda Grubišić ◽  
Johannes Sachsperger ◽  
Rui M. A. Caldeira

Abstract The island of Madeira is well known for giving rise to atmospheric wakes. Strong and unsteady atmospheric wakes, resembling a von Kármán vortex street, are frequently observed in satellite images leeward of Madeira, especially during summer months, when conditions favoring the formation of atmospheric wakes occur frequently under the influence of the Azores high. Reported here is the analysis of the first airborne measurements of Madeira’s wake collected during the 2010 Island-induced Wake (I-WAKE) campaign. High-resolution in situ and remote sensing data were collected in the I-WAKE by a research aircraft. The measurements reveal distinctive wake signatures, including strong lateral wind shear zones and warm and dry eddies downwind of the island. A strong anticorrelation of the horizontal wind speed and sea surface temperature (SST) was found within the wake. High-resolution numerical simulations with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model were used to study the dynamics of the wake generation and its temporal evolution. The comparison of the model results and observations reveals a remarkable fidelity of the simulated wake features within the marine boundary layer (MBL). Strong potential vorticity (PV) anomalies were found in the simulated MBL wake, emanating from the flanks of the island. The response of the wake formation within the MBL to surface friction and enhanced thermal forcing is explored through the model sensitivity analyses.

2015 ◽  
Vol 143 (12) ◽  
pp. 4883-4903 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas R. Parish ◽  
David A. Rahn ◽  
Dave Leon

Abstract Summertime low-level winds in the marine boundary layer off the California coast are predominantly from the north. This pattern is interrupted periodically by southerly winds and low stratus that can propagate for hundreds of kilometers northward along the coast. These events have been termed coastally trapped disturbances, coastally trapped wind reversals, and southerly surges; their forcing has been the subject of extensive study and debate. Southerly surges remain difficult to forecast, yet have a significant impact on coastal activities. The beginning stage of a southerly surge on 16 June 2012 was explored during the Precision Atmospheric Marine Boundary Layer Experiment. Measurements of the horizontal wind and pressure field in the marine layer offshore from Cape Arguello hours prior to the onset of the surge were made using the University of Wyoming King Air research aircraft. Airborne measurements show that a horizontal pressure field is established with higher pressure to the south just prior to the surge, supporting southerly ageostrophic winds and a south-to-north movement of marine stratus. Aircraft soundings and lidar returns confirm the existence of offshore flow of warm, continental air north of Point Arguello that alters the pressure field adjacent to the coast. The southerly surge originates near Point Arguello and propagates northward past San Francisco during the early morning hours on 17 June 2012. Results from the Weather Research and Forecasting Model are consistent with the King Air observations. Analyses and model output presented here confirm that the large-scale environment is critical to the initiation of these wind reversals.


2002 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-22
Author(s):  
V.N. Astapenko ◽  
◽  
Ye.I. Bushuev ◽  
V.P. Zubko ◽  
V.I. Ivanov ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Thorkild M. Rasmussen

NOTE: This article was published in a former series of GEUS Bulletin. Please use the original series name when citing this article. Rasmussen, T. M. (1). Aeromagnetic survey in central West Greenland: project Aeromag 2001. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 191, 67-72. https://doi.org/10.34194/ggub.v191.5130 The series of government-funded geophysical surveys in Greenland was continued during the spring and summer of 2001 with a regional aeromagnetic survey north of Uummannaq, project Aeromag 2001 (Fig. 1). The survey added about 70 000 line kilometres of high-quality magnetic measurements to the existing database of modern airborne geophysical data from Greenland. This database includes both regional high-resolution aeromagnetic surveys and detailed surveys with combined electromagnetic and magnetic airborne measurements.


Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 104
Author(s):  
Alexandros P. Poulidis ◽  
Atsushi Shimizu ◽  
Haruhisa Nakamichi ◽  
Masato Iguchi

Ground-based remote sensing equipment have the potential to be used for the nowcasting of the tephra hazard from volcanic eruptions. To do so raw data from the equipment first need to be accurately transformed to tephra-related physical quantities. In order to establish these relations for Sakurajima volcano, Japan, we propose a methodology based on high-resolution simulations. An eruption that occurred at Sakurajima on 16 July 2018 is used as the basis of a pilot study. The westwards dispersal of the tephra cloud was ideal for the observation network that has been installed near the volcano. In total, the plume and subsequent tephra cloud were recorded by 2 XMP radars, 1 lidar and 3 optical disdrometers, providing insight on all phases of the eruption, from plume generation to tephra transport away from the volcano. The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) and FALL3D models were used to reconstruct the transport and deposition patterns. Simulated airborne tephra concentration and accumulated load were linked, respectively, to lidar backscatter intensity and radar reflectivity. Overall, results highlight the possibility of using such a high-resolution modelling-based methodology as a reliable complementary strategy to common approaches for retrieving tephra-related quantities from remote sensing data.


2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 2223-2238 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Boilley ◽  
J.-F. Mahfouf

Abstract. The Nice Côte d'Azur international airport is subject to horizontal low-level wind shears. Detecting and predicting these hazards is a major concern for aircraft security. A measurement campaign took place over the Nice airport in 2009 including 4 anemometers, 1 wind lidar and 1 wind profiler. Two wind shear events were observed during this measurement campaign. Numerical simulations were carried out with Meso-NH in a configuration compatible with near-real time applications to determine the ability of the numerical model to predict these events and to study the meteorological situations generating an horizontal wind shear. A comparison between numerical simulation and the observation dataset is conducted in this paper.


Author(s):  
Luke J. LeBel ◽  
Brian H. Tang ◽  
Ross A. Lazear

AbstractThe complex terrain at the intersection of the Mohawk and Hudson valleys of New York has an impact on the development and evolution of severe convection in the region. Specifically, previous research has concluded that terrain-channeled flow in the Mohawk and Hudson valleys likely contributes to increased low-level wind shear and instability in the valleys during severe weather events such as the historic 31 May 1998 event that produced a strong (F3) tornado in Mechanicville, New York.The goal of this study is to further examine the impact of terrain channeling on severe convection by analyzing a high-resolution WRF model simulation of the 31 May 1998 event. Results from the simulation suggest that terrain-channeled flow resulted in the localized formation of an enhanced low-level moisture gradient, resembling a dryline, at the intersection of the Mohawk and Hudson valleys. East of this boundary, the environment was characterized by stronger low-level wind shear and greater low-level moisture and instability, increasing tornadogenesis potential. A simulated supercell intensified after crossing the boundary, as the larger instability and streamwise vorticity of the low-level inflow was ingested into the supercell updraft. These results suggest that terrain can have a key role in producing mesoscale inhomogeneities that impact the evolution of severe convection. Recognition of these terrain-induced boundaries may help in anticipating where the risk of severe weather may be locally enhanced.


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