An Observational Study of Tropical Cyclone Spinup in Supertyphoon Jangmi (2008) from 24 to 27 September

2014 ◽  
Vol 142 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil T. Sanger ◽  
Michael T. Montgomery ◽  
Roger K. Smith ◽  
Michael M. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Observational Study ◽  
Satellite Imagery ◽  
Doppler Radar ◽  
Relative Vorticity ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Research Aircraft

Abstract An observational study of tropical cyclone intensification is performed using dropsondes, in situ flight-level data, satellite imagery, and Electra Doppler Radar (ELDORA) during the spinup of Tropical Storm Jangmi (2008) in the western North Pacific. This event was observed with research aircraft during the Tropical Cyclone Structure 2008 (TCS08) field experiment over the course of 3 days as Jangmi intensified rapidly from a tropical storm to a supertyphoon. The dropsonde analysis indicates that the peak azimuthally averaged storm-relative tangential wind speed occurs persistently within the boundary layer throughout the spinup period and suggests that significant supergradient winds are present near and just within the radius of maximum tangential winds. An examination of the ELDORA data in Tropical Storm Jangmi reveals multiple rotating updrafts near the developing eye beneath cold cloud top temperatures ≤−65°C. In particular, there is a 12-km-wide, upright updraft with a peak velocity of 9 m s−1 with collocated strong low-level (z < 2 km) convergence of 2 × 10−3 s−1 and intense relative vorticity of 4 × 10−3 s−1. The analysis of the corresponding infrared satellite imagery suggests that vortical updrafts are common before and during rapid intensification. The findings of this study support a recent paradigm of tropical cyclone intensification in which rotating convective clouds are important elements in the spinup process. In a system-scale view of this process, the maximum tangential wind is found within the boundary layer, where the tangential wind becomes supergradient before the air ascends into the eyewall updraft.

Simulation of the Downshear Reformation of a Tropical Cyclone

2015 ◽  
Vol 72 (12) ◽  
pp. 4529-4551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leon T. Nguyen ◽  
John Molinari
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Diabatic Heating ◽  
Wrf Model ◽  
Relative Vorticity ◽  
Horizontal Resolution ◽  
Cyclonic Circulation ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Weather Research And Forecasting ◽  
Cyclonic Vorticity

Abstract The downshear reformation of Tropical Storm Gabrielle (2001) was simulated at 1-km horizontal resolution using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model. The environmental shear tilted the initial parent vortex downshear left and forced azimuthal wavenumber-1 kinematic, thermodynamic, and convective asymmetries. The combination of surface enthalpy fluxes and a lack of penetrative downdrafts right of shear allowed boundary layer moist entropy to increase to a maximum downshear right. This contributed to convective instability that fueled the downshear convection. Within this convection, an intense mesovortex rapidly developed, with maximum boundary layer relative vorticity reaching 2.2 × 10−2 s−1. Extreme vortex stretching played a key role in the boundary layer spinup of the mesovortex. Cyclonic vorticity remained maximized in the boundary layer and intensified upward with the growth of the convective plume. The circulation associated with the mesovortex and adjacent localized cyclonic vorticity anomalies comprised a developing “inner vortex” on the downshear-left (downtilt) periphery of the parent cyclonic circulation. The inner vortex was nearly upright within a parent vortex that was tilted significantly with height. This inner vortex became the dominant vortex of the system, advecting and absorbing the broad, tilted parent vortex. The reduction of tropical cyclone (TC) vortex tilt from 65 to 20 km in 3 h reflected the emerging dominance of this upright inner vortex. The authors hypothesize that downshear reformation, resulting from diabatic heating associated with asymmetric convection, can aid the TC’s resistance to shear by reducing vortex tilt and by enabling more diabatic heating to occur near the center, a region known to favor TC intensification.

A New Time-dependent Theory of Tropical Cyclone Intensification

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuqing Wang ◽  
Yuanlong Li ◽  
Jing Xu
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Numerical Simulations ◽  
Strong Dependence ◽  
Surface Wind ◽  
Time Dependent ◽  
Quasi Equilibrium ◽  
Free Atmosphere ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Tangential Wind

AbstractIn this study, the boundary-layer tangential wind budget equation following the radius of maximum wind, together with an assumed thermodynamical quasi-equilibrium boundary layer is used to derive a new equation for tropical cyclone (TC) intensification rate (IR). A TC is assumed to be axisymmetric in thermal wind balance with eyewall convection becoming in moist slantwise neutrality in the free atmosphere above the boundary layer as the storm intensifies as found recently based on idealized numerical simulations. An ad-hoc parameter is introduced to measure the degree of congruence of the absolute angular momentum and the entropy surfaces. The new IR equation is evaluated using results from idealized ensemble full-physics axisymmetric numerical simulations. Results show that the new IR equation can reproduce the time evolution of the simulated TC intensity. The new IR equation indicates a strong dependence of IR on both TC intensity and the corresponding maximum potential intensity (MPI). A new finding is the dependence of TC IR on the square of the MPI in terms of the near-surface wind speed for any given relative intensity. Results from some numerical integrations of the new IR equation also suggest the finite-amplitude nature of TC genesis. In addition, the new IR theory is also supported by some preliminary results based on best-track TC data over the North Atlantic and eastern and western North Pacific. Compared with the available time-dependent theories of TC intensification, the new IR equation can provide a realistic intensity-dependent IR during weak intensity stage as in observations.

Doppler Profiler and Radar Observations of Boundary Layer Variability during the Landfall of Tropical Storm Gabrielle

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 234-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin R. Knupp ◽  
Justin Walters ◽  
Michael Biggerstaff
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Doppler Radar ◽  
Layer Structure ◽  
Flow Direction ◽  
Surface Flow ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Boundary Layer Structure ◽  
Stratiform Precipitation ◽  
Wind Profiles

Abstract Detailed observations of boundary layer structure were acquired on 14 September 2001, prior to and during the landfall of Tropical Storm Gabrielle. The Mobile Integrated Profiling System (MIPS) and the Shared Mobile Atmospheric Research and Teaching Radar (SMART-R) were collocated at the western Florida coastline near Venice, very close to the wind center at landfall. Prior to landfall, the boundary layer was rendered weakly stable by a long period of evaporational cooling and mesoscale downdrafts within extensive stratiform precipitation that started 18 h before landfall. The cool air mass was expansive, with an area within the 23°C surface isotherm of about 50 000 km2. East-northeasterly surface flow transported this cool air off the west coast of Florida, toward the convergent warm core of the Gabrielle, and promoted the development of shallow warm and cold fronts that were prominent during the landfall phase. Airflow properties of the boundary layer around the coastal zone are examined using the MIPS and SMART-R data. Wind profiles exhibited considerable temporal variability throughout the period of observations. The stable offshore flow within stratiform precipitation exhibited a modest jet that descended from about 600 to 300 m within the 20-km zone centered on the coastline. In contrast, the onshore flow on the western side of the wind center produced a more turbulent boundary layer that exhibited a well-defined top varying between 400 and 1000 m MSL. The horizontal variability of each boundary layer is examined using high-resolution Doppler radar scans at locations up to 15 km on either side of the coastline, along the mean flow direction of the boundary layer. These analyses reveal that transitions in boundary layer structure for both the stable and unstable regimes were most substantial within 5 km of the coastline.

scholarly journals An Observational Study of the Symmetric Boundary Layer Structure and Tropical Cyclone Intensity

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yifang Ren ◽  
Jun A. Zhang ◽  
Jonathan L. Vigh ◽  
Ping Zhu ◽  
Hailong Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Wind Speed ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Layer Structure ◽  
Mixed Layer Depth ◽  
Layer Depth ◽  
Storm Intensity ◽  
Boundary Layer Structure ◽  
Warm Core ◽  
Tangential Wind

This study analyses Global Positioning System dropsondes to document the axisymmetric tropical cyclone (TC) boundary-layer structure, based on storm intensity. A total of 2608 dropsondes from 42 named TCs in the Atlantic basin from 1998 to 2017 are used in the composite analyses. The results show that the axisymmetric inflow layer depth, the height of maximum tangential wind speed, and the thermodynamic mixed layer depth are all shallower in more intense TCs. The results also show that more intense TCs tend to have a deep layer of the near-saturated air inside the radius of maximum wind speed (RMW). The magnitude of the radial gradient of equivalent potential temperature (θe) near the RMW correlates positively with storm intensity. Above the inflow layer, composite structures of TCs with different intensities all possess a ring of anomalously cool temperatures surrounding the warm-core, with the magnitude of the warm-core anomaly proportional to TC intensity. The boundary layer composites presented here provide a climatology of how axisymmetric TC boundary layer structure changes with intensity.

Impact of Parameterized Boundary Layer Structure on Tropical Cyclone Rapid Intensification Forecasts in HWRF

2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (4) ◽  
pp. 1413-1426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun A. Zhang ◽  
Robert F. Rogers ◽  
Vijay Tallapragada
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Inner Core ◽  
Layer Structure ◽  
Intensity Change ◽  
Rapid Intensification ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Boundary Layer Structure ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
The Impact

Abstract This study evaluates the impact of the modification of the vertical eddy diffusivity (Km) in the boundary layer parameterization of the Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting (HWRF) Model on forecasts of tropical cyclone (TC) rapid intensification (RI). Composites of HWRF forecasts of Hurricanes Earl (2010) and Karl (2010) were compared for two versions of the planetary boundary layer (PBL) scheme in HWRF. The results show that using a smaller value of Km, in better agreement with observations, improves RI forecasts. The composite-mean, inner-core structures for the two sets of runs at the time of RI onset are compared with observational, theoretical, and modeling studies of RI to determine why the runs with reduced Km are more likely to undergo RI. It is found that the forecasts with reduced Km at the RI onset have a shallower boundary layer with stronger inflow, more unstable near-surface air outside the eyewall, stronger and deeper updrafts in regions farther inward from the radius of maximum wind (RMW), and stronger boundary layer convergence closer to the storm center, although the mean storm intensity (as measured by the 10-m winds) is similar for the two groups. Finally, it is found that the departure of the maximum tangential wind from the gradient wind at the eyewall, and the inward advection of angular momentum outside the eyewall, is much larger in the forecasts with reduced Km. This study emphasizes the important role of the boundary layer structure and dynamics in TC intensity change, supporting recent studies emphasizing boundary layer spinup mechanism, and recommends further improvement to the HWRF PBL physics.

scholarly journals Observational Study on the Characteristics of the Boundary Layer during Changes in the Intensity of Tropical Cyclones Landing in Guangdong, China

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Fei Liao ◽  
Ran Su ◽  
Pak-Wai Chan ◽  
Yanbin Qi ◽  
Kai-Kwong Hon
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Angular Momentum ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
Wind Velocity ◽  
Guangdong Province ◽  
Height Range ◽  
Maximum Wind ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Radial Outflow

Eleven tropical cyclones that landed in Guangdong Province since 2012 and experienced strengthening or weakening over the offshore area were studied. Since the structure of the tropical cyclone boundary layer significantly influences the variation of the intensity of the cyclone, continuous observations of the wind profile radar at a coastal radar station in Guangdong Province were combined with aircraft observation data of the No. 1604 “Nida” cyclone to analyse the variations in the distributions of the radial wind, tangential wind, and angular momentum in the typhoon boundary layer and the similarities and differences between the boundary layers of the 11 tropical cyclones during the strengthening or weakening of their intensities. The analysis results show that the presence of the supergradient wind and the enhancement effect of the radial inflow play important roles in enhancing the intensity of a tropical cyclone. The observations indicate that when the tangential wind velocity in the maximum wind velocity radius reaches the velocity of the supergradient wind and when the radial inflow either gradually increases towards the centre of the tropical cyclone or gradually covers the entire boundary layer, the angular momentum tends to be shifted towards the centre. At this time, the maximum radial inflow, maximum tangential wind, and maximum angular momentum are in the same height range in the vertical direction. When a strong radial outflow occurs in the boundary layer of a tropical cyclone or the area with maximum wind velocity is located in the air outflow, the angular momentum cannot easily be transported towards the centre of the typhoon. Therefore, the spatial configuration of the three physical quantities will determine future changes in the intensity of tropical cyclones. The scope of the results presented here is limited to the 11 selected cases and suggests extending the analysis to more data.

Rapid Filamentation Zones in Intense Tropical Cyclones

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 325-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher M. Rozoff ◽  
Wayne H. Schubert ◽  
Brian D. McNoldy ◽  
James P. Kossin
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
Coherent Structures ◽  
Deep Convection ◽  
Relative Vorticity ◽  
Moist Convection ◽  
Vortex Interaction ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Stratiform Precipitation ◽  
Deep Moist Convection

Abstract Intense tropical cyclones often possess relatively little convection around their cores. In radar composites, this surrounding region is usually echo-free or contains light stratiform precipitation. While subsidence is typically quite pronounced in this region, it is not the only mechanism suppressing convection. Another possible mechanism leading to weak-echo moats is presented in this paper. The basic idea is that the strain-dominated flow surrounding an intense vortex core creates an unfavorable environment for sustained deep, moist convection. Strain-dominated regions of a tropical cyclone can be distinguished from rotation-dominated regions by the sign of S21 + S22 − ζ2, where S1 = ux − υy and S2 = υx + uy are the rates of strain and ζ = υx − uy is the relative vorticity. Within the radius of maximum tangential wind, the flow tends to be rotation-dominated (ζ2 > S21 + S22), so that coherent structures, such as mesovortices, can survive for long periods of time. Outside the radius of maximum tangential wind, the flow tends to be strain-dominated (S21 + S22 > ζ2), resulting in filaments of anomalous vorticity. In the regions of strain-dominated flow the filamentation time is defined as τfil = 2(S21 + S22 − ζ2)−1/2. In a tropical cyclone, an approximately 30-km-wide annular region can exist just outside the radius of maximum tangential wind, where τfil is less than 30 min and even as small as 5 min. This region is defined as the rapid filamentation zone. Since the time scale for deep moist convective overturning is approximately 30 min, deep convection can be significantly distorted and even suppressed in the rapid filamentation zone. A nondivergent barotropic model illustrates the effects of rapid filamentation zones in category 1–5 hurricanes and demonstrates the evolution of such zones during binary vortex interaction and mesovortex formation from a thin annular ring of enhanced vorticity.

scholarly journals Reexamining the Near-Core Radial Structure of the Tropical Cyclone Primary Circulation: Implications for Vortex Resiliency

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 408-425 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J. Mallen ◽  
Michael T. Montgomery ◽  
Bin Wang
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Vertical Wind Shear ◽  
Relative Vorticity ◽  
Core Region ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Theoretical Studies ◽  
True Nature ◽  
Radial Profiles ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Radial Structure

Abstract Recent theoretical studies, based on vortex Rossby wave (VRW) dynamics, have established the importance of the radial structure of the primary circulation in the response of tropical cyclone (TC)–like vortices to ambient vertical wind shear. Linear VRW theory suggests, in particular, that the degree of broadness of the primary circulation in the near-core region beyond the radius of maximum wind strongly influences whether a tilted TC vortex will realign and resist vertical shear or tilt over and shear apart. Fully nonlinear numerical simulations have verified that the vortex resiliency is indeed sensitive to the initial radial structure of the idealized vortex. This raises the question of how well the “true” nature of a TC’s primary circulation is represented by idealized vortices that are commonly used in some theoretical studies. In this paper the swirling wind structure of TCs is reexamined by utilizing flight-level observations collected from Atlantic and eastern Pacific storms during 1977–2001. Hundreds of radial profiles of azimuthal-mean tangential wind and relative vorticity are constructed from over 5000 radial flight leg segments and compared with some standard idealized vortex profiles. This analysis reaffirms that real TC structure in the near-core region is characterized by relatively slow tangential wind decay in conjunction with a skirt of significant cyclonic relative vorticity possessing a negative radial gradient. This broadness of the primary circulation is conspicuously absent in some idealized vortices used in theoretical studies of TC evolution in vertical shear. The relationship of the current findings to the problem of TC resiliency is discussed.

scholarly journals The genesis of Typhoon Nuri as observed during the Tropical Cyclone Structure 2008 (TCS-08) field experiment – Part 3: Dynamics of low-level spin-up during the genesis

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 26795-26840
Author(s):  
L. L. Lussier ◽  
M. T. Montgomery ◽  
M. M. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Doppler Radar ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Tangential Velocity ◽  
Radar Data ◽  
Tropical Cyclogenesis ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Tropical Wave ◽  
Wind Profiles

Abstract. Aircraft reconnaissance data collected during the Tropical Cyclone Structure 2008 field campaign are used to examine further kinematical, dynamical and thermodynamical aspects of the genesis of Typhoon Nuri. Data from the first two missions into the pre-Nuri disturbance document the transition from a tropical wave to a tropical depression. Dropwindsonde-derived tangential wind profiles at several radii from the low-level circulation center indicate that the magnitude of low-level circulation increases and that the corresponding tangential velocity maximum moves inward from the first to second reconnaissance mission. To compliment these findings, a three-dimensional variational analysis incorporating both dropwindsonde and aircraft Doppler radar data is conducted. These data are used to perform circulation tendency calculations at multiple distances from the low-level circulation center. The results demonstrate a net spin-up of the system-scale circulation in the low-levels near the center and in the outer regions of the recirculating Kelvin cat's eye circulation. In these regions, the spin-up tendency due to the influx of cyclonic absolute vorticity exceeds the frictional spin-down tendency for both Nuri missions. The system-scale spin up is found to be accompanied by areas of low-level vorticity concentration through vortex-tube stretching associated with cumulus convection. The areal coverage and intensity of these high-vorticity regions increase between the first and second Nuri missions. The findings of this study are consistent in some respects to the Nuri observational analysis carried out by Raymond and Lopez (2011), but differ in their suggested key result and related scientific implication that the pre-Nuri disturbance was spinning down on the first day of observations. The findings herein strongly support a recent tropical cyclogenesis model positing that the Kelvin cat's eye circulation of the parent wave-like disturbance provides a favorable environment for convective-vorticity organization and low-level spin-up on the mesoscale.

scholarly journals Lilly’s Model for Steady-State Tropical Cyclone Intensity and Structure

2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (11) ◽  
pp. 3701-3720
Author(s):  
Dandan Tao ◽  
Richard Rotunno ◽  
Michael Bell
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Steady State ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Inner Core ◽  
Cloud Model ◽  
Surface Boundary ◽  
Unpublished Manuscript ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Radial Structure ◽  
Simplifying Assumptions

AbstractThis study revisits the axisymmetric tropical cyclone (TC) theory from D. K. Lilly’s unpublished manuscript (Lilly model) and compares it to axisymmetric TC simulations from a nonhydrostatic cloud model. Analytic solutions of the Lilly model are presented through simplifying assumptions. Sensitivity experiments varying the sea surface, boundary layer and tropopause temperatures, and the absolute angular momentum (M) at some outer radius in the Lilly model show that these variations influence the radial structure of the tangential wind profile V(r) at the boundary layer top. However, these parameter variations have little effect on the inner-core normalized tangential wind, V(r/rm)/Vm, where Vm is the maximum tangential wind at radius rm. The outflow temperature T∞ as a function of M (or saturation entropy s*) is found to be the only input that changes the normalized tangential wind radial structure in the Lilly model. In contrast with the original assumption of the Lilly model that T∞(s*) is determined by the environment, it is argued here that T∞(s*) is determined by the TC interior flow under the environmental constraint of the tropopause height. The present study shows that the inner-core tangential wind radial structure from the Lilly model generally agrees well with nonhydrostatic cloud model simulations except in the eyewall region where the Lilly model tends to underestimate the tangential winds due to its balanced-dynamics assumptions. The wind structure in temperature–radius coordinates from the Lilly model can largely reproduce the numerical simulation results. Though the Lilly model is based on a number of simplifying assumptions, this paper shows its utility in understanding steady-state TC intensity and structure.

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