scholarly journals Scale-Invariant Formulation of Momentum Diffusion for High-Resolution Atmospheric Circulation Models

2018 ◽  
Vol 146 (4) ◽  
pp. 1045-1062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Urs Schaefer-Rolffs ◽  
Erich Becker

A new version of the dynamic Smagorinsky model is presented that applies for nonisotropic momentum diffusion in high-resolution atmospheric circulation models. While the horizontal mixing length is computed in accordance with scale invariance in the mesoscale regime of the horizontal energy cascade, the associated dynamic vertical mixing length (DVML) is based on a recently developed scale invariance criterion and represents an application of the scaling laws of stratified macroturbulence. The DVML is validated in high-resolution simulations with the Kühlungsborn mechanistic general circulation model, using triangular spectral truncation at wavenumber 330 and a vertical level spacing of about 200 m in the upper troposphere. For a proper choice of the test filter, the model simulates a realistic horizontal kinetic energy spectrum in the troposphere along with a realistic intensity of the Lorenz energy cycle. This result is obtained without any hyperdiffusion, and it depends only little on whether the vertical mixing length is prescribed or set to the DVML. The globally averaged Smagorinsky parameter is about c S ≅ 0.53. The latitude–height cross sections show that c S maximizes in regions of strong mesoscale kinetic energy.

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (8) ◽  
pp. 2050-2069 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian K. Arbic ◽  
Malte Müller ◽  
James G. Richman ◽  
Jay F. Shriver ◽  
Andrew J. Morten ◽  
...  

Abstract Motivated by the potential of oceanic mesoscale eddies to drive intrinsic low-frequency variability, this paper examines geostrophic turbulence in the frequency–wavenumber domain. Frequency–wavenumber spectra, spectral fluxes, and spectral transfers are computed from an idealized two-layer quasigeostrophic (QG) turbulence model, a realistic high-resolution global ocean general circulation model, and gridded satellite altimeter products. In the idealized QG model, energy in low wavenumbers, arising from nonlinear interactions via the well-known inverse cascade, is associated with energy in low frequencies and vice versa, although not in a simple way. The range of frequencies that are highly energized and engaged in nonlinear transfer is much greater than the range of highly energized and engaged wavenumbers. Low-frequency, low-wavenumber energy is maintained primarily by nonlinearities in the QG model, with forcing and friction playing important but secondary roles. In the high-resolution ocean model, nonlinearities also generally drive kinetic energy to low frequencies as well as to low wavenumbers. Implications for the maintenance of low-frequency oceanic variability are discussed. The cascade of surface kinetic energy to low frequencies that predominates in idealized and realistic models is seen in some regions of the gridded altimeter product, but not in others. Exercises conducted with the general circulation model suggest that the spatial and temporal filtering inherent in the construction of gridded satellite altimeter maps may contribute to the discrepancies between the direction of the frequency cascade in models versus gridded altimeter maps seen in some regions. Of course, another potential reason for the discrepancy is missing physics in the models utilized here.


Radiocarbon ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas P Guilderson ◽  
Daniel P Schrag ◽  
Ethan Goddard ◽  
Michaele Kashgarian ◽  
Gerard M Wellington ◽  
...  

We have generated a high-resolution coral Δ14C record from the southwest subtropical Pacific spanning the last 50 yr. Prebomb (1950–1956) Δ14C values average −52%. Values begin to increase in 1957, reaching a maximum in the early 1970s, about 10 yr after the atmospheric peak. There is a consistent 10–15% seasonal cycle whose relationship with vertical mixing evolves as a consequence of the penetration of the bomb transient into subsurface waters. Comparison of this record with that simulated in an ocean general circulation model highlights the difficulty in modeling vertical exchange processes.


2009 ◽  
Vol 699 (1) ◽  
pp. 564-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam P. Showman ◽  
Jonathan J. Fortney ◽  
Yuan Lian ◽  
Mark S. Marley ◽  
Richard S. Freedman ◽  
...  

Ocean Science ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Cailleau ◽  
J. Chanut ◽  
J.-M. Lellouche ◽  
B. Levier ◽  
C. Maraldi ◽  
...  

Abstract. The regional ocean operational system remains a key element in downscaling from large scale (global or basin scale) systems to coastal ones. It enables the transition between systems in which the resolution and the resolved physics are quite different. Indeed, coastal applications need a system to predict local high frequency events (inferior to the day) such as storm surges, while deep sea applications need a system to predict large scale lower frequency ocean features. In the framework of the ECOOP project, a regional system for the Iberia-Biscay-Ireland area has been upgraded from an existing V0 version to a V2. This paper focuses on the improvements from the V1 system, for which the physics are close to a large scale basin system, to the V2 for which the physics are more adapted to shelf and coastal issues. Strong developments such as higher regional physics resolution in the NEMO Ocean General Circulation Model for tides, non linear free surface and adapted vertical mixing schemes among others have been implemented in the V2 version. Thus, regional thermal fronts due to tidal mixing now appear in the latest version solution and are quite well positioned. Moreover, simulation of the stratification in shelf areas is also improved in the V2.


2017 ◽  
Vol 50 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 2537-2552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark S. Williamson ◽  
Mat Collins ◽  
Sybren S. Drijfhout ◽  
Ron Kahana ◽  
Jennifer V. Mecking ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucile Gaultier ◽  
Clément Ubelmann ◽  
Lee-Lueng Fu

AbstractConventional altimetry measures a one-dimensional profile of sea surface height (SSH) along the satellite track. Two-dimensional SSH can be reconstructed using mapping techniques; however, the spatial resolution is quite coarse even when data from several altimeters are analyzed. A new satellite mission based on radar interferometry is scheduled to be launched in 2020. This mission, called Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), will measure SSH at high resolution along a wide swath, thus providing two-dimensional images of the ocean surface topography. This new capability will provide a large amount of data even though they are contaminated with instrument noise and geophysical errors. This paper presents a tool that simulates synthetic observations of SSH from the future SWOT mission using SSH from any ocean general circulation model (OGCM). SWOT-like data have been generated from a high-resolution model and analyzed to investigate the sampling and accuracy characteristics of the future SWOT data. This tool will help explore new ideas and methods for optimizing the retrieval of information from future SWOT missions.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rishav Goyal ◽  
Martin Jucker ◽  
Alex Sen Gupta ◽  
Harry Hendon ◽  
Matthew England

Abstract A distinctive feature of the Southern Hemisphere (SH) extratropical atmospheric circulation is the quasi-stationary zonal wave 3 (ZW3) pattern, characterized by three high and three low-pressure centers around the SH extratropics. This feature is present in both the mean atmospheric circulation and its variability on daily, seasonal and interannual timescales. While the ZW3 pattern has significant impacts on meridional heat transport and Antarctic sea ice extent, the reason for its existence remains uncertain, although it has long been assumed to be linked to the existence of three major land masses in the SH extratropics. Here we use an atmospheric general circulation model to show that the stationery ZW3 pattern is instead driven by zonal asymmetric deep atmospheric convection in the tropics, with little to no role played by the orography or land masses in the extratropics. Localized regions of deep convection in the tropics form a local Hadley cell which in turn creates a wave source in the subtropics that excites a poleward and eastward propagating wave train which forms stationary waves in the SH high latitudes. Our findings suggest that changes in tropical deep convection, either due to natural variability or climate change, will impact the zonal wave 3 pattern, with implications for Southern Hemisphere climate, ocean circulation, and sea-ice.


Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 401
Author(s):  
Qing Zhou ◽  
Yong Zhang ◽  
Shuze Jia ◽  
Junli Jin ◽  
Shanshan Lv ◽  
...  

Clouds are significant in the global radiation budget, atmospheric circulation, and hydrological cycle. However, knowledge regarding the observed climatology of the cloud vertical structure (CVS) over Beijing is still poor. Based on high-resolution radiosonde observations at Beijing Nanjiao Weather Observatory (BNWO) during the period 2010–2017, the method for identifying CVS depending on height-resolved relative humidity thresholds is improved, and CVS estimation by radiosonde is compared with observations by millimeter-wave cloud radar and ceilometer at the same site. Good consistency is shown between the three instruments. Then, the CVS climatology, including the frequency distribution and seasonal variation, is investigated. Overall, the occurrence frequency (OF) of cloudy cases in Beijing is slightly higher than that of clear-sky cases, and the cloud OF is highest in summer and lowest in winter. Single-layer clouds and middle-level clouds are dominant in Beijing. In addition, the average cloud top height (CTH), cloud base height (CBH), and cloud thickness in Beijing are 6.2 km, 4.0 km, and 2.2 km, respectively, and show the trend of reaching peaks in spring and minimums in winter. In terms of frequency distribution, the CTH basically resides below an altitude of 16 km, and approximately 43% of the CBHs are located at altitudes of 0.5–1.5 km. The cloud OF has only one peak located at altitudes of 4–8 km in spring, whereas it shows a trimodal distribution in other seasons. The height at which the cloud OF reaches its peak is highest in summer and lowest in winter. To the best of our knowledge, the cloud properties analyzed here are the first to elucidate the distribution and temporal variation of the CVS in Beijing from a long-term sounding perspective, and these results will provide a scientific observation basis for improving the atmospheric circulation model, as well as comparisons and verifications for measurements by ground-based remote sensing equipment.


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