The Missing Link between Terrain-Induced Potential Vorticity Banners and Banded Convection

2016 ◽  
Vol 144 (11) ◽  
pp. 4063-4080 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon K. Siedersleben ◽  
Alexander Gohm
Keyword(s):  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Topographic Features ◽  
Inertial Instability ◽  
Northern Alpine Foreland ◽  
Southern Side ◽  
Northern Side ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Alpine Foreland ◽  
Conditional Instability

Abstract On 1 February 2014, the southern side of the Alps was affected by a severe snowstorm that forced authorities to issue the highest level of avalanche danger in southern parts of Austria. The northern side of the Alps was mostly dry. Nevertheless, radar imagery captured the evolution of quasi-steady convective cloud bands over the northern Alpine foreland with a remarkable length of up to 300 km. This study illuminates the processes that generated these cloud bands based on numerical simulations. The storm was associated with a deep large-scale trough that caused strong southwesterly cross-Alpine flow, orographic precipitation on the southern side, and foehnlike subsidence on the northern side of the Alps. Orographic potential vorticity (PV) banners developed at small-scale topographic features embedded in the Alps and extended downstream over the northern Alpine foreland. Convective cloud bands were aligned parallel to these PV banners. They formed in an environment of inertial instability (negative absolute vorticity) and conditional instability. Sensitivity experiments reveal that the structure and size of these cloud bands are strongly sensitive to the small-scale terrain roughness. Removing small-scale topographic features suppresses the formation of orographic vorticity banners, which in turn suppresses the development of cloud bands. These results suggest that the release of inertial instability at negative orographic vorticity banners was crucial for establishing circulations and associated uplift that triggered conditional instability. To summarize, inertial instability was most likely responsible for the banded structure and conditional instability for the convective nature of these cloud bands.

scholarly journals A climatology of sub-seasonal temporal clustering of extreme precipitation in Switzerland and its links to extreme discharge

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
pp. 2949-2972
Author(s):  
Alexandre Tuel ◽  
Olivia Martius
Keyword(s):  
Extreme Precipitation ◽  
River Discharge ◽  
Precipitation Extremes ◽  
Spatiotemporal Pattern ◽  
High Discharge ◽  
Temporal Clustering ◽  
Extreme Precipitation Events ◽  
Southern Side ◽  
Northern Side ◽  
The Alps

Abstract. The successive occurrence of extreme precipitation events on sub-seasonal timescales can lead to large precipitation accumulations and extreme river discharge. In this study, we analyze the sub-seasonal clustering of precipitation extremes in Switzerland and its link to the occurrence and duration of extreme river discharge. We take a statistical approach based on Ripley's K function to characterize the significance of the clustering for each season separately. Temporal clustering of precipitation extremes exhibits a distinct spatiotemporal pattern. It occurs primarily on the northern side of the Alps in winter and on their southern side in fall. Cluster periods notably account for 10 %–16 % of seasonal precipitation in these two regions. The occurrence of a cluster of precipitation extremes generally increases the likelihood and duration of high-discharge events compared to non-clustered precipitation extremes, particularly at low elevations. It is less true in winter, when the magnitude of precipitation extremes is generally lower and much of the precipitation falls as snow. In fall, however, temporal clusters associated with large precipitation accumulations over the southern Alps are found to be almost systematically followed by extreme discharge.

scholarly journals A climatology of sub-seasonal temporal clustering of extreme precipitation in Switzerland and its impacts

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Tuel ◽  
Olivia Martius
Keyword(s):  
Extreme Precipitation ◽  
Precipitation Extremes ◽  
Flood Events ◽  
Temporal Clustering ◽  
Extreme Precipitation Events ◽  
Southern Side ◽  
Northern Side ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Seasonal Time Scale

Abstract. The successive occurrence of extreme precipitation events on a sub-seasonal time-scale can lead to large precipitation accumulations, a classic trigger of flood events. Here we analyse sub-seasonal clustering in Switzerland, first characterizing the tendency of precipitation extremes to cluster in time for each season separately, and second, linking the occurrence of persistent flood events to sub-seasonal clusters of precipitation extremes. We find a distinct spatio-temporal pattern in temporal clustering behavior of precipitation extremes, with temporal clustering occurring on the northern side of the Alps in winter, and on their southern side in fall. In winter, the magnitude of precipitation extremes is generally lower, and much of the precipitation falls as snow, therefore temporal clusters contribute little to the occurrence of persistent flood events. In fall, however, temporal clusters associated with large precipitation accumulations over the southern Alps are found to be almost systematically followed by floods. In addition, discharge magnitudes decrease more slowly after clustered extremes.

scholarly journals New chronological constraints on the timing of Late Pleistocene glacier advances in northern Switzerland

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorian Gaar ◽  
Hans Rudolf Graf ◽  
Frank Preusser
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Northern Switzerland ◽  
Stage 4 ◽  
Glacier Dynamics ◽  
Northern Alpine Foreland ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Alpine Foreland ◽  
Methodological Considerations ◽  
Age Constraints ◽  
Partial Bleaching

Abstract. Deposits of the Reuss Glacier in the central northern Alpine foreland of Switzerland are dated using luminescence methodology. Methodological considerations on partial bleaching and fading correction of different signals imply the robustness of the results. An age of ca. 25 ka for sediment directly overlying basal lodgement till corresponds well with existing age constraints for the last maximal position of glaciers of the northern Swiss Alpine Foreland. Luminescence ages imply an earlier advance of Reuss Glacier into the lowlands during Marine Isotope Stage 4. The presented data are compared to findings from other parts of the Alps regarding glacier dynamics and palaeoclimatological implications, such as the source of precipitation during the Late Pleistocene.

Early Pleistocene complex cut-and-fill sequences in the Alps

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catharina Dieleman ◽  
Marcus Christl ◽  
Christof Vockenhuber ◽  
Philip Gautschi ◽  
Naki Akçar
Keyword(s):  
Depositional Environment ◽  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Cosmogenic Nuclide ◽  
Base Level ◽  
Drainage Patterns ◽  
Northern Alpine Foreland ◽  
First Onset ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Alpine Foreland ◽  
Cut And Fill

<p>Deckenschotter (Cover Gravels in German) are Quaternary glacio-fluvial gravels, which unconformably overlie Tertiary Molasse or Mesozoic bedrock in the Northern Alpine Foreland. They comprise also the evidence of the Early Pleistocene glaciations. A significant phase of incision separated them into Höhere Deckenschotter (HDS: Higher Cover Gravels) and Tiefere Deckenschotter (TDS: Lower Cover Gravels) based on their topography. How the landscape evolved during Deckenschotter times is still not fully understood. The new cosmogenic nuclide chronology suggests that HDS deposited around 2 Ma and TDS around 1 Ma. In addition, 2 Ma old Deckenschotter are located at the same topographic elevation as the 1 Ma ones at Irchel (Canton of Zurich). This, indeed, points to cut-and-fill sequences and challenges the chronology based on the morphostratigraphy.</p><p>The aim of this study is to reconstruct the drainage patterns, base level changes, and thus the landscape evolution in the northern Alpine Foreland during the Early Pleistocene. Therefore, we focused on three Deckenschotter sites at Irchel and one in the area around Lake Constance. Sediments at these sites were analysed in detail to reveal their provenance, transport mechanism, depositional environment, and paleoflow regimes. Their chronology was established by isochron-burial dating. Our results indicate that the analysed sediments were transported from the Central and eastern Central Alps as well as from the Molasse to the foreland first by glaciers and then by rivers. They are deposited in a glacio-fluvial environment in the vicinity of a glacier. Based on the reconstructed chronology in this study and published cosmogenic nuclide ages, we propose that Deckenschotter are cut-and-fill sequences accumulated in three pulses between 2.5 Ma and 1 Ma. This cut-and-fill system implies that the regional base level was relatively constant during the Early Pleistocene. In addition, the depositional environment of Deckenschotter shows the presence of glaciers in the foreland. The 2.5 Ma old gravels, therefore, document the first advance of glaciers onto the Alpine Foreland. This seems to be synchronous with a first onset of glaciations on the northern hemisphere, which is assumed to occur at around 2.7 Ma.</p>

scholarly journals Herniaria alpina (Caryophyllaceae) in the Iberian Peninsula

2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 086
Author(s):  
Moisès Guardiola Bufí
Keyword(s):  
Iberian Peninsula ◽  
Rare Species ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Identification Key ◽  
Taxonomic Treatment ◽  
Southern Side ◽  
Northern Side ◽  
The Alps

Herniaria alpina Chaix is a southern European orophyte distributed in the Alps, Apennines and the Pyrenees. In the Pyrenees it is considered a rare species because it is only known from few locations of the northern side (France) and there are no citations in the southern side (Spain). In summer 2018, a population was found in the Catalan Pyrenees (northeastern Iberian Peninsula). A complete description is presented and an identification key is included as an amendment for its taxonomic treatment in Flora iberica. Its current Pyrenean distribution, habitat and phenology are also reported. The conservation status is evaluated under the IUCN regional and national levels.

Phänologische Trends bei den Waldbäumen in der Schweiz | Phenological trends regarding the forest trees in Switzerland

2005 ◽  
Vol 156 (6) ◽  
pp. 207-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudio Defila
Keyword(s):  
Regional Differences ◽  
Early Growth ◽  
Horse Chestnut ◽  
Forest Trees ◽  
Spring Season ◽  
Arrival Times ◽  
The Past ◽  
Early Arrival ◽  
Southern Side ◽  
The Alps

Numerous publications are devoted to plant phenological trends of all trees, shrubs and herbs. In this work we focus on trees of the forest. We take into account the spring season (leaf and needle development) as well as the autumn (colour turning and shedding of leaves) for larch, spruce and beech, and,owing to the lack of further autumn phases, the horse chestnut. The proportion of significant trends is variable, depending on the phenological phase. The strongest trend to early arrival in spring was measured for needles of the larch for the period between 1951 and 2000 with over 20 days. The leaves of the horse chestnut show the earliest trend to turn colour in autumn. Beech leaves have also changed colour somewhat earlier over the past 50 years. The trend for shedding leaves, on the other hand, is slightly later. Regional differences were examined for the growth of needles in the larch where the weakest trends towards early growth are found in Canton Jura and the strongest on the southern side of the Alps. The warming of the climate strongly influences phenological arrival times. Trees in the forest react to this to in a similar way to other plants that have been observed (other trees, shrubs and herbs).

scholarly journals Influence of the Upstream Terrain on the Formation of a Cold Frontal Snowband in Northeast China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Na Li ◽  
Baofeng Jiao ◽  
Lingkun Ran ◽  
Zongting Gao ◽  
Shouting Gao
Keyword(s):  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Northeast China ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Control Experiment ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Inertial Instability ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Conditional Instability

AbstractWe investigated the influence of upstream terrain on the formation of a cold frontal snowband in Northeast China. We conducted numerical sensitivity experiments that gradually removed the upstream terrain and compared the results with a control experiment. Our results indicate a clear negative effect of upstream terrain on the formation of snowbands, especially over large-scale terrain. By thoroughly examining the ingredients necessary for snowfall (instability, lifting and moisture), we found that the release of mid-level conditional instability, followed by the release of low-level or near surface instabilities (inertial instability, conditional instability or conditional symmetrical instability), contributed to formation of the snowband in both experiments. The lifting required for the release of these instabilities was mainly a result of frontogenetic forcing and upper gravity waves. However, the snowband in the control experiment developed later and was weaker than that in the experiment without upstream terrain. Two factors contributed to this negative topographic effect: (1) the mountain gravity waves over the upstream terrain, which perturbed the frontogenetic circulation by rapidly changing the vertical motion and therefore did not favor the release of instabilities in the absence of persistent ascending motion; and (2) the decrease in the supply of moisture as a result of blocking of the upstream terrain, which changed both the moisture and instability structures leeward of the mountains. A conceptual model is presented that shows the effects of the instabilities and lifting on the development of cold frontal snowbands in downstream mountains.

scholarly journals Volcanism and Volcanogenic Submarine Sedimentation in the Paleogene Foreland Basins of the Alps: Reassessing the Source-to-Sink Systems with an Actualist View

Geosciences ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 23
Author(s):  
Andrea Di Capua ◽  
Federica Barilaro ◽  
Gianluca Groppelli
Keyword(s):  
Foreland Basin ◽  
Fault System ◽  
Foreland Basins ◽  
The North ◽  
Source To Sink ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Alpine Foreland ◽  
Alpine Foreland Basin ◽  
Tectonic Lineament ◽  
First Time

This work critically reviews the Eocene–Oligocene source-to-sink systems accumulating volcanogenic sequences in the basins around the Alps. Through the years, these volcanogenic sequences have been correlated to the plutonic bodies along the Periadriatic Fault System, the main tectonic lineament running from West to East within the axis of the belt. Starting from the large amounts of data present in literature, for the first time we present an integrated 4D model on the evolution of the sediment pathways that once connected the magmatic sources to the basins. The magmatic systems started to develop during the Eocene in the Alps, supplying detritus to the Adriatic Foredeep. The progradation of volcanogenic sequences in the Northern Alpine Foreland Basin is subsequent and probably was favoured by the migration of the magmatic systems to the North and to the West. At around 30 Ma, the Northern Apennine Foredeep also was fed by large volcanogenic inputs, but the palinspastic reconstruction of the Adriatic Foredeep, together with stratigraphic and petrographic data, allows us to safely exclude the Alps as volcanogenic sources. Beyond the regional case, this review underlines the importance of a solid stratigraphic approach in the reconstruction of the source-to-sink system evolution of any basin.

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