scholarly journals Long-term mean vertical velocity measured by MST radar at Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E)

2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 451-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. V. Rao ◽  
P. Vinay Kumar ◽  
M. C. Ajay Kumar ◽  
G. Dutta
Keyword(s):  
Vertical Velocity ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Vertical Wind ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Direct Measurements ◽  
Semidiurnal Variation ◽  
Vertical Beam ◽  
Tropical Station

Abstract. MST radars are capable of measuring vertical motion along a vertically directed beam. We present 8 years (1995–2003) averaged profile of vertical velocity in the troposphere and the lower stratosphere over Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E), a tropical station. A downward mid-tropospheric w is observed with a reversal of sign around 10 km and a further reversal can also be seen at ~17 km. A significant diurnal and semidiurnal variation in vertical wind is observed for all heights with subsidence during the evening hours. Seasonal variability of vertical wind is also found to be quite appreciable. Vertical velocities have been derived using symmetric pairs of off-vertical beams and a comparison has been made with direct vertical beam measurements. Vertical components estimated from E-W and N-S radial velocities do not match and are also found to have discrepancy with direct measurements. Plausible causes of the discrepancy have been investigated with the help of some case studies. Vertical shear in horizontal wind, gradients in horizontal velocities and echo power imbalance may be some of the factors responsible for the observed discrepancy.

scholarly journals Adaptive Beamforming Technique for Accurate Vertical Wind Measurements with Multichannel MST Radar

2012 ◽  
Vol 29 (12) ◽  
pp. 1769-1775 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koji Nishimura ◽  
Takuji Nakamura ◽  
Toru Sato ◽  
Kaoru Sato
Keyword(s):  
Signal To Noise Ratio ◽  
Adaptive Beamforming ◽  
Vertical Wind ◽  
Constrained Minimization ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Signal To Noise ◽  
Mst Radar ◽  
Vertical Beam ◽  
Noise Ratio ◽  
Beamforming Technique

Abstract Aspect-sensitive backscattering of the atmosphere causes a small error in an effective line-of-sight direction in vertical beam observations leading to a serious degradation of vertical wind estimates due to contamination by horizontal wind components. An adaptive beamforming technique for a multichannel mesosphere–stratosphere–troposphere (MST) radar is presented, which makes it possible to measure the vertical wind velocity with higher accuracy by adaptively generating a countersteered reception beam against an off-vertically shifted echo pattern. The technique employs the norm-constrained direction-constrained minimization of power (NC-DCMP) algorithm, which provides not only robustness but also higher accuracy than the basic direction-constrained minimization of power algorithm in realistic conditions. Although the technique decreases the signal-to-noise ratio, the ratio is controlled and bound at a specified level by the norm constraint. In the case that a decrease of −3 dB is acceptable in a vertical beam observation, for which usually a much higher signal-to-noise ratio is obtained than for oblique beams, the maximum contamination is suppressed to even for the most imbalanced aspect sensitivity.

scholarly journals Statistical Quality Control of High-Resolution Winds of Different Radiosonde Types for Climatology Analysis

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 1796-1812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karim Houchi ◽  
Ad Stoffelen ◽  
Gert-Jan Marseille ◽  
Jos De Kloe
Keyword(s):  
Quality Control ◽  
Wind Shear ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Statistical Quality Control ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Measurement Systems ◽  
High Vertical Resolution ◽  
Good Improvement

AbstractQuality control (QC) is among the most important steps in any data processing. These steps are elaborated for high-vertical-resolution radiosonde datasets that were gathered and analyzed to study atmospheric winds. The database is composed of different radiosonde wind-finding systems (WFSs), including radio theodolite, Loran C, and GPS. Inspection of this database, particularly for wind, wind shear, and ascent height increments (dz), showed a nonnegligible amount of outliers in radio theodolite data as compared to the two other WFSs, thus denoting quality differences between the various systems. An effective statistical QC (SQC) is then developed to isolate and eliminate outliers from the more realistic observations. Improving the accuracy of the radio theodolite WFS is critical to the derivation of the vertical motion and the vertical gradients of the horizontal wind—that is, wind shear—mainly because of the direct dependence of these quantities on dz. Based on the climatological distribution of the quality-controlled dz, a new approach is suggested to estimate these wind quantities for radio theodolite data. The approach is validated with the high-quality modern WFSs (Loran C and GPS). Although initially of reduced quality, applying SQC and using the climatological mean dz of 12-s smoothed radio theodolite profiles shows very good improvement in the climatological wind analyses of radio theodolite WFSs. Notably, the climatologies of ascent rate, vertical motion, horizontal wind, and vertical shear now look comparable for the various WFSs. Thus, the SQC processing steps prove essential and may be extended to other variables and measurement systems.

scholarly journals Aspect sensitivity in the VHF radar backscatters studied using simultaneous observations of Gadanki MST radar and GPS sonde

2004 ◽  
Vol 22 (11) ◽  
pp. 4013-4023 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. Ghosh ◽  
S. S. Das ◽  
A. K. Patra ◽  
D. N. Rao ◽  
A. R. Jain
Keyword(s):  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Vhf Radar ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Power Difference ◽  
Mst Radar ◽  
Favorable Conditions ◽  
Tropical Station ◽  
Aspect Sensitivity

Abstract. Simultaneous observations made on four days using the MST radar and GPS-sonde at Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E), a tropical station in India, are presented to address the aspect sensitivity of radar backscatters observed at different heights. The observations show that wherever stability parameter N2 is high, vertical shear of horizontal wind is low and Richardson number (Ri) is high, the aspect sensitivity is high indicating that the aspect sensitive radar backscatters are due to thermal structures in the atmosphere. Such a case can be seen very clearly in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. At some heights, where N2 is high, Ri is high, but shears are relatively weak, the aspect sensitivity is found to almost disappear, indicating that some amount of shear provides favorable conditions for causing aspect sensitivity. Aspect sensitivity does not occur at all where N2 is low or negative and Ri is low in spite of wind shear being either high or low, indicating that the regions are well mixed and hence turbulent. The study also shows a power difference in the symmetric beams. A case study on this aspect suggests that this asymmetry is due to the tilting of layers by the action of atmospheric waves. There is indication that these waves are generated through Kelvin-Helmholtz-instability (KHI).

scholarly journals Development of a 3D Real-Time Atmospheric Monitoring System (3DREAMS) Using Doppler LiDARs and Applications for Long-Term Analysis and Hot-and-Polluted Episodes

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 1036 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve Hung Lam YIM
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Monitoring System ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Vertical Wind ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Atmospheric Monitoring

Heatwaves and air pollution are serious environmental problems that adversely affect human health. While related studies have typically employed ground-level data, the long-term and episodic characteristics of meteorology and air quality at higher altitudes have yet to be fully understood. This study developed a 3-Dimensional Real-timE Atmospheric Monitoring System (3DREAMS) to measure and analyze the vertical profiles of horizontal wind speed and direction, vertical wind velocity as well as aerosol backscatter. The system was applied to Hong Kong, a highly dense city with complex topography, during each season and including hot-and-polluted episodes (HPEs) in 2019. The results reveal that the high spatial wind variability and wind characteristics in the lower atmosphere in Hong Kong can extend upwards by up to 0.66 km, thus highlighting the importance of mountains for the wind environment in the city. Both upslope and downslope winds were observed at one site, whereas downward air motions predominated at another site. The high temperature and high concentration of fine particulate matter during HPEs were caused by a significant reduction in both horizontal and vertical wind speeds that established conditions favorable for heat and air pollutant accumulation, and by the prevailing westerly wind promoting transboundary air pollution. The findings of this study are anticipated to provide valuable insight for weather forecasting and air quality studies. The 3DREAMS will be further developed to monitor upper atmosphere wind and air quality over the Greater Bay Area of China.

scholarly journals Diagnosing Mesoscale Vertical Motion from Horizontal Velocity and Density Data

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 1744-1762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enric Pallàs Sanz ◽  
Álvaro Viúdez
Keyword(s):  
Vertical Velocity ◽  
Extreme Values ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Shear Velocity ◽  
Horizontal Velocity ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Coriolis Parameter ◽  
Vertical Vorticity ◽  
Omega Equation ◽  
Q Vector

Abstract The mesoscale vertical velocity is obtained by solving a generalized omega equation (ω equation) using density and horizontal velocity data from three consecutive quasi-synoptic high-resolution surveys in the Alboran Sea. The Atlantic Jet (AJ) and the northern part of the Western Alboran Gyre (WAG) were observed as a large density anticyclonic front extending down to 200–230 m. The horizontal velocity uh in the AJ reached maxima of 1.2 m s−1 for the three surveys, with extreme Rossby numbers of ζ/f ≈ −0.9 in the WAG and +0.9 in the AJ (where ζ is the vertical vorticity and f is the Coriolis parameter). The generalized ω equation includes the ageostrophic horizontal flow. It is found that the most important “forcing” term in this equation is ( fζph + ∇hϱ) · ∇2huh, where ζph is the horizontal (pseudo) vorticity and ϱ is the buoyancy. This term is related to the horizontal advection of vertical vorticity by the vertical shear velocity, uhz · ∇hζ. Extreme values of the diagnosed vertical velocity w were located at 80–100 m with max{w} ⊂ [34, 45] and min{w} ⊂ [−64, −34] m day−1. Comparison with the quasigeostrophic (QG) ω equation shows that, because of the large Rossby numbers, non-QG terms are important. The differences between w and the QG vertical velocity are mainly related to the divergence of the ageostrophic part of the total Q vector (Qh ≡ ∇huh · ∇hϱ) in the ω equation.

scholarly journals On the Initial Development of Asymmetric Vertical Motion and Horizontal Relative Flow in a Mature Tropical Cyclone Embedded in Environmental Vertical Shear

2013 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 3471-3491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yamei Xu ◽  
Yuqing Wang
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
Dominant Role ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Asymmetric Flow ◽  
Initial Development ◽  
Budget Analysis ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Relative Flow

Abstract In this paper, the authors focus on the initial development of asymmetric vertical motion and horizontal relative flow in a mature tropical cyclone (TC) embedded in an environmental vertical shear. The fully compressible, nonhydrostatic TC model was used to perform a series of numerical experiments with a mature TC with different intensities embedded in shear with different magnitudes and different vertical profiles. Results show that the development of both the wavenumber-1 asymmetric vertical motion and horizontal relative flow for a TC embedded in vertical shear is quite sensitive to both the magnitude and the vertical profile of wind shear, as well as the intensity of the TC itself. Diagnostic analysis based on the quasi-balanced potential vorticity inversion indicates that the balanced dynamics can only explain a small portion of the asymmetric vertical motion and relative flow. The unbalanced processes contribute predominantly to the development of the asymmetric flow in the simulations. It is shown that the eyewall of a mature TC plays a role somewhat like a material cylinder embedded in an environmental flow with vertical shear. The interaction between the environmental shear and the eyewall produces vertical gradient of convergence/divergence of horizontal wind around the lateral edge of the eyewall. This forces much stronger asymmetric vertical motion than the balanced processes do and drives significant horizontal relative divergent flow over the storm core, which opposes vertical shear and reduces the vertical tilt of the storm axis. In addition, the budget analysis for the axisymmetric tangential wind demonstrates that the asymmetric flow plays a dominant role in weakening the storm top down.

Response of Atmospheric Convection to Vertical Wind Shear: Cloud-System-Resolving Simulations with Parameterized Large-Scale Circulation. Part I: Specified Radiative Cooling

2014 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 2976-2993 ◽  
Author(s):  
Usama Anber ◽  
Shuguang Wang ◽  
Adam Sobel
Keyword(s):  
Wind Shear ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Vertical Wind Shear ◽  
Surface Fluxes ◽  
Vertical Wind ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Nonmonotonic Dependence ◽  
Convective Systems ◽  
Mass Fluxes

Abstract It is well known that vertical wind shear can organize deep convective systems and greatly extend their lifetimes. Much less is known about the influence of shear on the bulk properties of tropical convection in statistical equilibrium. To address the latter question, the authors present a series of cloud-resolving simulations on a doubly periodic domain with parameterized large-scale dynamics based on the weak temperature gradient (WTG) approximation. The horizontal-mean horizontal wind is relaxed strongly in these simulations toward a simple unidirectional linear vertical shear profile in the troposphere. The strength and depth of the shear layer are varied as control parameters. Surface enthalpy fluxes are prescribed. The results fall in two distinct regimes. For weak wind shear, time-averaged rainfall decreases with shear and convection remains disorganized. For larger wind shear, rainfall increases with shear, as convection becomes organized into linear mesoscale systems. This nonmonotonic dependence of rainfall on shear is observed when the imposed surface fluxes are moderate. For larger surface fluxes, convection in the unsheared basic state is already strongly organized, but increasing wind shear still leads to increasing rainfall. In addition to surface rainfall, the impacts of shear on the parameterized large-scale vertical velocity, convective mass fluxes, cloud fraction, and momentum transport are also discussed.

scholarly journals Vertical Structure of Spiral Shocks in a Corrugated Galactic Disc

1983 ◽  
Vol 100 ◽  
pp. 145-146
Author(s):  
A. H. Nelson ◽  
T. Matsuda ◽  
T. Johns
Keyword(s):  
Density Profile ◽  
Vertical Velocity ◽  
Gas Flow ◽  
Vertical Structure ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Shock Structure ◽  
Galactic Disc ◽  
Gaussian Density ◽  
Abundant Evidence ◽  
Steady Shock

Numerical calculations of spiral shocks in the gas discs of galaxies (1,2,3) usually assume that the disc is flat, i.e. the gas motion is purely horizontal. However there is abundant evidence that the discs of galaxies are warped and corrugated (4,5,6) and it is therefore of interest to consider the effect of the consequent vertical motion on the structure of spiral shocks. If one uses the tightly wound spiral approximation to calculate the gas flow in a vertical cut around a circular orbit (i.e the ⊝ -z plane, see Nelson & Matsuda (7) for details), then for a gas disc with Gaussian density profile in the z-direction and initially zero vertical velocity a doubly periodic spiral potential modulation produces the steady shock structure shown in Fig. 1. The shock structure is independent of z, and only a very small vertical motion appears with anti-symmetry about the mid-plane.

scholarly journals Effects of atmospheric dynamics and aerosols on the fraction of supercooled water clouds

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 1847-1863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiming Li ◽  
Qiaoyi Lv ◽  
Min Zhang ◽  
Tianhe Wang ◽  
Kazuaki Kawamoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Vertical Velocity ◽  
Meteorological Parameters ◽  
Temporal Correlation ◽  
Supercooled Liquid ◽  
Satellite Observation ◽  
Static Stability ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Atmospheric Dynamics ◽  
Horizontal Wind

Abstract. Based on 8 years of (January 2008–December 2015) cloud phase information from the GCM-Oriented Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) Cloud Product (GOCCP), aerosol products from CALIPSO and meteorological parameters from the ERA-Interim products, the present study investigates the effects of atmospheric dynamics on the supercooled liquid cloud fraction (SCF) during nighttime under different aerosol loadings at global scale to better understand the conditions of supercooled liquid water gradually transforming to ice phase. Statistical results indicate that aerosols' effect on nucleation cannot fully explain all SCF changes, especially in those regions where aerosols' effect on nucleation is not a first-order influence (e.g., due to low ice nuclei aerosol frequency). By performing the temporal and spatial correlations between SCFs and different meteorological factors, this study presents specifically the relationship between SCF and different meteorological parameters under different aerosol loadings on a global scale. We find that the SCFs almost decrease with increasing of aerosol loading, and the SCF variation is closely related to the meteorological parameters but their temporal relationship is not stable and varies with the different regions, seasons and isotherm levels. Obviously negative temporal correlations between SCFs versus vertical velocity and relative humidity indicate that the higher vertical velocity and relative humidity the smaller SCFs. However, the patterns of temporal correlation for lower-tropospheric static stability, skin temperature and horizontal wind are relatively more complex than those of vertical velocity and humidity. For example, their close correlations are predominantly located in middle and high latitudes and vary with latitude or surface type. Although these statistical correlations have not been used to establish a certain causal relationship, our results may provide a unique point of view on the phase change of mixed-phase cloud and have potential implications for further improving the parameterization of the cloud phase and determining the climate feedbacks.

scholarly journals On strongly nonlinear gravity waves in a vertically sheared atmosphere

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-74
Author(s):  
Mark Schlutow ◽  
Georg S. Voelker
Keyword(s):  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Lower Layer ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Horizontal Wind ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Individual Layer ◽  
Strongly Nonlinear ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Stability

Abstract We investigate strongly nonlinear stationary gravity waves which experience refraction due to a thin vertical shear layer of horizontal background wind. The velocity amplitude of the waves is of the same order of magnitude as the background flow and hence the self-induced mean flow alters the modulation properties to leading order. In this theoretical study, we show that the stability of such a refracted wave depends on the classical modulation stability criterion for each individual layer, above and below the shearing. Additionally, the stability is conditioned by novel instability criteria providing bounds on the mean-flow horizontal wind and the amplitude of the wave. A necessary condition for instability is that the mean-flow horizontal wind in the upper layer is stronger than the wind in the lower layer.

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