scholarly journals The Sensitivity of the Terrestrial Surface Energy and Water Balance Estimates in the WRF Model to Lower Surface Boundary Representations: A South Norway Case Study

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helene B. Erlandsen ◽  
Ingjerd Haddeland ◽  
Lena M. Tallaksen ◽  
Jørn Kristiansen
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Water Balance ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Surface Boundary

Abstract A seasonal snow cover, expansive forests, a long coast line, and a mountainous terrain are features of Norway’s geography. Forests, ground snow, and sea surface temperature (SST) vary on time scales relevant for weather forecasting and climate projections. The mapping and model parameterization of these features vary in novelty, accuracy, and complexity. This paper investigates how increasing the influence of each of these features affects southern Norway’s surface energy and water balance in a regional climate model (WRF). High-resolution (3.7 km) experimental runs have been conducted over two consecutive hydrological years, including 1) heightening the boreal forest line (the Veg experiment), 2) increasing ground snow by altering the snow/rain criterion (the Snow experiment), or 3) increasing the SST (the SST experiment). The Veg experiment led to an increase in annual net radiation in the study area (by 3 W m−2), largely balanced out by an increase in latent heat flux. Moisture recycling increased, leaving only a negligible decrease in annual runoff. Surface temperature increased by 0.1°C, and its seasonal variability was dampened. Significant changes were also found outside the area of vegetation change. Snow decreased by 1.5 W m−2, despite slight increases in downward shortwave and longwave radiation. Both sensible heat flux and surface temperature decreased (by 1.3 W m−2 and 0.2°C, respectively), but the annual water balance remained mostly unchanged. The SST experiment led to increased downward and upward longwave radiation. Surface temperature was raised by 0.2°C. Advected oceanic moisture and thus both precipitation and runoff increased (by 2.5% and 2.8%, respectively).

scholarly journals Updated cloud physics in a regional atmospheric climate model improves the modelled surface energy balance of Antarctica

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. van Wessem ◽  
C. H. Reijmer ◽  
J. T. M. Lenaerts ◽  
W. J. van de Berg ◽  
M. R. van den Broeke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Surface Energy Balance ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
Ice Cloud ◽  
Long Wave ◽  
Regional Atmospheric Climate Model

Abstract. In this study the effects of changes in the physics package of the regional atmospheric climate model RACMO2 on the modelled surface energy balance, near-surface temperature and wind speed of Antarctica are presented. The physics package update primarily consists of an improved turbulent and radiative flux scheme and a revised cloud scheme that includes a parameterisation for ice cloud super-saturation. The ice cloud super-saturation has led to more moisture being transported onto the continent, resulting in more and optically thicker clouds and more downward long-wave radiation. Overall, the updated model better represents the surface energy balance, based on a comparison with >750 months of data from nine automatic weather stations located in East Antarctica. Especially the representation of the turbulent sensible heat flux and net long-wave radiative flux has improved with a decrease in biases of up to 40%. As a result, modelled surface temperatures have increased and the bias, when compared to 10 m snow temperatures from 64 ice-core observations, has decreased from −2.3 K to −1.3 K. The weaker surface temperature inversion consequently improves the representation of the sensible heat flux, whereas wind speed biases remain unchanged. However, significant model biases remain, partly because RACMO2 at a resolution of 27 km is unable to resolve steep topography.

Intercomparison of Spatially Distributed Models for Predicting Surface Energy Flux Patterns during SMACEX

2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 941-953 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wade T. Crow ◽  
Fuqin Li ◽  
William P. Kustas
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Energy Flux ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Fluxes ◽  
Spatially Distributed

Abstract The treatment of aerodynamic surface temperature in soil–vegetation–atmosphere transfer (SVAT) models can be used to classify approaches into two broad categories. The first category contains models utilizing remote sensing (RS) observations of surface radiometric temperature to estimate aerodynamic surface temperature and solve the terrestrial energy balance. The second category contains combined water and energy balance (WEB) approaches that simultaneously solve for surface temperature and energy fluxes based on observations of incoming radiation, precipitation, and micrometeorological variables. To date, few studies have focused on cross comparing model predictions from each category. Land surface and remote sensing datasets collected during the 2002 Soil Moisture–Atmosphere Coupling Experiment (SMACEX) provide an opportunity to evaluate and intercompare spatially distributed surface energy balance models. Intercomparison results presented here focus on the ability of a WEB-SVAT approach [the TOPmodel-based Land–Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (TOPLATS)] and an RS-SVAT approach [the Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model] to accurately predict patterns of turbulent energy fluxes observed during SMACEX. During the experiment, TOPLATS and TSEB latent heat flux predictions match flux tower observations with root-mean-square (rms) accuracies of 67 and 63 W m−2, respectively. TSEB predictions of sensible heat flux are significantly more accurate with an rms accuracy of 22 versus 46 W m−2 for TOPLATS. The intercomparison of flux predictions from each model suggests that modeling errors for each approach are sufficiently independent and that opportunities exist for improving the performance of both models via data assimilation and model calibration techniques that integrate RS- and WEB-SVAT energy flux predictions.

scholarly journals Analyse De L’impact Du Changement De La Couverture Végétale Sur La Pluie Et La Température De Surface Au Sénégal

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (29) ◽  
pp. 270
Author(s):  
Ibrahima Diba ◽  
Moctar Camara
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
The North ◽  
Model Control ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
The Impact

This work aims at examining the potential impacts of vegetation change (reforestation) of the Sahel-Sahara interface on the intra-seasonal and interannual variability of the rainfall and surface temperature over Senegal using the RegCM4 model. Two runs were performed from 1990 to 2009 with a spatial resolution of 50 km (0.44 °): the standard version of the RegCM4 model (control version) and the reforested one (named RegCM4_REFORESTATION). The impact of the reforestation is to decrease the surface temperature over Senegal in summer (JJAS). This decrease could be partly due to a decrease of the sensible heat flux over the southern and central Senegal and a strong increase of the latent heat flux. The reforestation also tends to increase the rainfall over the whole country and particularly in the Southwest. This rainfall increase which can also create an evaporative cooling, is consistent with the decrease of the surface temperature. The analysis of the annual cycle over three domains of Senegal shows that the reforestation tends to strengthen the low-levels humidity of the atmosphere from January to December especially during the summer period in the North and in the center of the country. The surface temperature presents two maxima in April-May and October-November and a minimum during the summer. The reforestation has a cooling impact during the whole year (particularly in the summer) and over the center and the northern part of Senegal. At the interannual timescale, the reforestation modifies significantly the rainfall by generally increasing it. However, there are years in which this trend is not respected and this translates into a weak correlation coefficient in the South of the country. This rainfall increase may translates into extreme hydroclimatic events such as floods. This work can be considered as a support for the Senegalese policymakers for the better planning of the management of adverse potential effects (such as floods, drought, heat waves, etc) of the Sahel-Sahara greening effort.

scholarly journals The surface energy balance in a cold-arid permafrost environment, Ladakh Himalaya, India

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Mohd Wani ◽  
Renoj J. Thayyen ◽  
Chandra Shekhar Prasad Ojha ◽  
Stephan Gruber
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Latent Heat ◽  
Latent Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Energy Balance ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
The Alps

Abstract. Cryosphere of the cold-arid trans-Himalayan region is unique with its significant permafrost cover. While the information on the permafrost characteristics and its extent started emerging, the governing energy regimes of this cryosphere region is of particular interest. This paper present the results of Surface Energy Balance (SEB) studies carried out in the upper Ganglass catchment in the Ladakh region of India, which feed directly to the River Indus. The point SEB is estimated using the one-dimensional mode of GEOtop model from 1 September 2015 to 31 August 2017 at 4727 m a.s.l elevation. The model is evaluated using field monitored radiation components, snow depth variations and one-year near-surface ground temperatures and showed good agreement with the respective simulated values. The study site has an air temperature range of −23.7 to 18.1 °C with a mean annual average temperature (MAAT) of −2.5 and ground surface temperature range of −9.8 to 19.1 °C. For the study period, the surface energy balance characteristics of the cold-arid site show that the net radiation was the major component with mean value of 28.9 W m−2 followed by sensible heat flux (13.5 W m−2) and latent heat flux (12.8 W m−2), and the ground heat flux was equal to 0.4 W m−2. The partitioning of energy balance during the study period shows that 47 % of Rn was converted into H, 44 % into LE, 1 % into G and 7 % for melting of seasonal snow. Both the study years experienced distinctly different, low and high snow regime. Key differences due to this snow regime change in surface energy balance characteristics were observed during peak summer (July–August). The latent heat flux was higher (lower) during this period with 39 W m−2 (11 W m−2) during high (low) snow years. The study also shows that the sensible heat flux during the early summer season (May, June) of the high (low) snow was much smaller (higher) −3.4 W m−2 (36.1 W m−2). During the study period, snow cover builds up in the catchment initiated by the last week of December facilitating the ground cooling by almost three months (October to December) of sub-zero temperatures up to −20 °C providing a favourable environment for permafrost. It is observed that the Ladakh region have a very low relative humidity in the range of 43 % as compared to, e.g., ~ 70 % in the Alps facilitating lower incoming longwave radiation and strongly negative net longwave radiation averaging ~ −90 W m−2 compared to −40 W m−2 in the Alps. Hence, the high elevation cold-arid region land surfaces could be overall colder than the locations with more RH such as the Alps. Further, it is apprehended that high incoming shortwave radiation in the region may be facilitating enhanced cooling of wet valley bottom surfaces as a result of stronger evaporation.

scholarly journals Updated cloud physics improve the modelled near surface climate of Antarctica of a regional atmospheric climate model

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 3231-3260
Author(s):  
J. M. van Wessem ◽  
C. H. Reijmer ◽  
J. T. M. Lenaerts ◽  
W. J. van de Berg ◽  
M. R. van den Broeke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
Radiative Flux ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Climate ◽  
Downward Longwave Radiation ◽  
Regional Atmospheric Climate Model

Abstract. The physics package of the polar version of the regional atmospheric climate model RACMO2 has been updated from RACMO2.1 to RACMO2.3. The update constitutes, amongst others, the inclusion of a parameterization for cloud ice super-saturation, an improved turbulent and radiative flux scheme and a changed cloud scheme. In this study the effects of these changes on the modelled near-surface climate of Antarctica are presented. Significant biases remain, but overall RACMO2.3 better represents the near-surface climate in terms of the modelled surface energy balance, based on a comparison with > 750 months of data from nine automatic weather stations located in East Antarctica. Especially the representation of the sensible heat flux and net longwave radiative flux has improved with a decrease in biases of up to 40 %. These improvements are mainly caused by the inclusion of ice super-saturation, which has led to more moisture being transported onto the continent, resulting in more and optically thicker clouds and more downward longwave radiation. As a result, modelled surface temperatures have increased and the bias, when compared to 10 m snow temperatures from 64 ice core observations, has decreased from −2.3 K to −1.3 K. The weaker surface temperature inversion consequently improves the representation of the sensible heat flux, whereas wind speed remains unchanged.

scholarly journals A 5 year record of surface energy and mass balance from the ablation zone of Storbreen, Norway

2008 ◽  
Vol 54 (185) ◽  
pp. 245-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liss M. Andreassen ◽  
Michiel R. Van Den Broeke ◽  
Rianne H. Giesen ◽  
Johannes Oerlemans
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Roughness Length ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Average Energy ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
Shortwave Radiation ◽  
Balance Model ◽  
Ablation Zone

AbstractA 5 year record of data from an automatic weather station (AWS) operating in the ablation zone of Storbreen, Norway, has been used to calculate the local surface energy and mass balance. The AWS observations cover five mass-balance years with an unusually strong mass deficit on Storbreen. The average energy flux (Q) contributing to melt for the period 2001–06 is 113 W m−2. Of this, the net shortwave radiation flux is the dominant contributor (92 W m−2), followed by the sensible heat flux (20 W m−2) and the latent heat flux (9 W m−2). The net longwave radiation (–6 W m−2) and the subsurface heat flux (–2 W m−2) contribute negatively to the budget. Net radiation thus produces 76% of the melt, while the turbulent fluxes and the subsurface heat flux produce 24% of the total melt. The seasonal mean incoming shortwave radiation is remarkably constant between the years, whereas variations in temperature and reflected shortwave radiation (albedo) explain most of the interannual variation in melt. The modelled ablation compares well with the measured ablation from stake readings. The sensitivity of the energy-balance model was examined by varying the surface roughness length of momentum and the sensitivity of the calculated melt by perturbations of temperature, wind speed and relative humidity.

scholarly journals Coupling of Integrated Biosphere Simulator to Regional Climate Model Version 3

2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 2743-2757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan M. Winter ◽  
Jeremy S. Pal ◽  
Elfatih A. B. Eltahir
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Latent Heat Flux ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Longwave Radiation ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
Integrated Biosphere Simulator

Abstract A description of the coupling of Integrated Biosphere Simulator (IBIS) to Regional Climate Model version 3 (RegCM3) is presented. IBIS introduces several key advantages to RegCM3, most notably vegetation dynamics, the coexistence of multiple plant functional types in the same grid cell, more sophisticated plant phenology, plant competition, explicit modeling of soil/plant biogeochemistry, and additional soil and snow layers. A single subroutine was created that allows RegCM3 to use IBIS for surface physics calculations. A revised initialization scheme was implemented for RegCM3–IBIS, including an IBIS-specific prescription of vegetation and soil properties. To illustrate the relative strengths and weaknesses of RegCM3–IBIS, one 4-yr numerical experiment was completed to assess ability of both RegCM3–IBIS (with static vegetation) and RegCM3 with its native land surface model, Biosphere–Atmosphere Transfer Scheme 1e (RegCM3–BATS1e), to simulate the energy and water budgets. Each model was evaluated using the NASA Surface Radiation Budget, FLUXNET micrometeorological tower observations, and Climate Research Unit Time Series 2.0. RegCM3–IBIS and RegCM3–BATS1e simulate excess shortwave radiation incident and absorbed at the surface, especially during the summer months. RegCM3–IBIS limits evapotranspiration, which allows for the correct estimation of latent heat flux, but increases surface temperature, sensible heat flux, and net longwave radiation. RegCM3–BATS1e better simulates temperature, net longwave radiation, and sensible heat flux, but systematically overestimates latent heat flux. This objective comparison of two different land surface models will help guide future adjustments to surface physics schemes within RegCM3.

scholarly journals Analysing surface energy balance closure and partitioning over a semi-arid savanna FLUXNET site in Skukuza, Kruger National Park, South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (7) ◽  
pp. 3401-3415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuhle P. Majozi ◽  
Chris M. Mannaerts ◽  
Abel Ramoelo ◽  
Renaud Mathieu ◽  
Alecia Nickless ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Surface Energy ◽  
Latent Heat ◽  
Surface Energy Balance ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Energy Balance Closure ◽  
Net Radiation ◽  
Wet Season

Abstract. Flux towers provide essential terrestrial climate, water, and radiation budget information needed for environmental monitoring and evaluation of climate change impacts on ecosystems and society in general. They are also intended for calibration and validation of satellite-based Earth observation and monitoring efforts, such as assessment of evapotranspiration from land and vegetation surfaces using surface energy balance approaches. In this paper, 15 years of Skukuza eddy covariance data, i.e. from 2000 to 2014, were analysed for surface energy balance closure (EBC) and partitioning. The surface energy balance closure was evaluated using the ordinary least squares regression (OLS) of turbulent energy fluxes (sensible (H) and latent heat (LE)) against available energy (net radiation (Rn) less soil heat (G)), and the energy balance ratio (EBR). Partitioning of the surface energy during the wet and dry seasons was also investigated, as well as how it is affected by atmospheric vapour pressure deficit (VPD), and net radiation. After filtering years with low-quality data (2004–2008), our results show an overall mean EBR of 0.93. Seasonal variations of EBR also showed the wet season with 1.17 and spring (1.02) being closest to unity, with the dry season (0.70) having the highest imbalance. Nocturnal surface energy closure was very low at 0.26, and this was linked to low friction velocity during night-time, with results showing an increase in closure with increase in friction velocity. The energy partition analysis showed that sensible heat flux is the dominant portion of net radiation, especially between March and October, followed by latent heat flux, and lastly the soil heat flux, and during the wet season where latent heat flux dominated sensible heat flux. An increase in net radiation was characterized by an increase in both LE and H, with LE showing a higher rate of increase than H in the wet season, and the reverse happening during the dry season. An increase in VPD is correlated with a decrease in LE and increase in H during the wet season, and an increase in both fluxes during the dry season.

scholarly journals Seasonal Surface Air Temperature and Precipitation in the FSU Climate Model Coupled to the CLM2

2005 ◽  
Vol 18 (16) ◽  
pp. 3217-3228 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. W. Shin ◽  
S. Cocke ◽  
T. E. LaRow ◽  
James J. O’Brien
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Air Temperature ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Air Temperature ◽  
Community Land Model ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Convective Scheme

Abstract The current Florida State University (FSU) climate model is upgraded by coupling the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Community Land Model Version 2 (CLM2) as its land component in order to make a better simulation of surface air temperature and precipitation on the seasonal time scale, which is important for crop model application. Climatological and seasonal simulations with the FSU climate model coupled to the CLM2 (hereafter FSUCLM) are compared to those of the control (the FSU model with the original simple land surface treatment). The current version of the FSU model is known to have a cold bias in the temperature field and a wet bias in precipitation. The implementation of FSUCLM has reduced or eliminated this bias due to reduced latent heat flux and increased sensible heat flux. The role of the land model in seasonal simulations is shown to be more important during summertime than wintertime. An additional experiment that assimilates atmospheric forcings produces improved land-model initial conditions, which in turn reduces the biases further. The impact of various deep convective parameterizations is examined as well to further assess model performance. The land scheme plays a more important role than the convective scheme in simulations of surface air temperature. However, each convective scheme shows its own advantage over different geophysical locations in precipitation simulations.

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