Fluxes over Varanasi during intensive observation period of MONTBLEX-90

ABSTRACT. MONTBLEX-90 data for an Intensive Observational Period (IOP) was extracted to investigate the thunderstorm and its impacts on surface layer at Varanasi on 27 July 1990. Sensible heat flux has been computed by profile, aerodynamic and eddy correlation methods. In addition to that. momentum and moisture fluxes have been computed for comparative diagnosis of situations before, at the time and after thunderstorm, Monin-Obukhov similarity theory has been used for quantification of the fluxes. Findings indicate that surface is more buoyant at the time of thunderstorm. Under this influence, maxima of moisture and momentum fluxes occur at the tin1e of thunderstorm. However, heat flux was found to be maximum before the thunderstorm, The results provide an understanding of surface layer turbulent transfer during stable and unstable conditions.

Variation of boundary layer heights and eddy diffusivities over dry and moist convective regions of monsoon trough during different phases of monsoon

Temperature, wind, and humidity data at 6 levels over meteorological towers at Kharagpur and Jodhpur and fast data at Jodhpur (Sonic anemometer at 4m and Gill anemometer 15 m) and Kharagpur (Sonic anemometer at 8m and Gill anemometer at 15m) were analysed. Diurnal variation of boundary layer heights and eddy diffusivity coefficient of moment, heat and moisture at dry convective region Jodhpur (26° N, 73°E) and moist convective region Kharagpur (22.3°N, 87.2°E) of monsoon trough during onset of monsoon, mid-monsoon and end-monsoon phases of the Indian southwest monsoon are studied using micro meteorological tower data. Boundary layer height is computed by eddy correlation (direct method) and profile method {indirect method). Indirect method underestimates the boundary layer height.

A direct aircraft observation of helical rolls in the tropical cyclone boundary layer

Helical rolls are known to play a significant role in modulating both the mean and turbulence structure of the atmospheric boundary layer in tropical cyclones. However, in-situ measurements of these rolls have been limited due to safety restrictions. This study presents analyses of data collected by an aircraft operated by the Hong Kong Observatory in Typhoon Kalmaegi (1415) and Typhoon Nida (1604). Examination of the flight-level data at ~ 600 m altitude confirmed the existence of sub-kilometer-scale rolls. These rolls were mostly observed in the outer-core region. Turbulent momentum fluxes were computed using the eddy correlation method. The averaged momentum flux of flight legs with rolls was found to be ~ 2.5 times that of legs without rolls at a similar wind speed range. This result suggests that rolls could significantly modulate turbulent transfer in the tropical cyclone boundary layer. This roll effect on turbulent fluxes should be considered in the planetary boundary layer parameterization schemes of numerical models simulating and forecasting tropical cyclones.

Towards a Fast, Open-Path Laser Hygrometer for Airborne Eddy Covariance Measurements

Water vapor fluxes play a key role in the energy budget of the atmosphere, and better flux measurements are needed to improve our understanding of the formation of clouds and storms. Large-scale measurements of these fluxes are possible by employing the eddy correlation (EC) method from an aircraft. A hygrometer used for such measurements needs to deliver a temporal resolution of at least 10 Hz while reliably operating in the harsh conditions on the exterior of an aircraft. Here, we present a design concept for a calibration-free, first-principles, open-path dTDLAS hygrometer with a planar, circular and rotationally symmetric multipass cell with new, angled coupling optics. From our measurements, the uncertainty of the instrument is estimated to be below 4.5% (coverage factor k = 1). A static intercomparison between a dTDLAS prototype of the new optics setup and a traceable dew point mirror hygrometer was conducted and showed a systematic relative deviation of 2.6% with a maximal relative error of 2.2%. Combined with a precision of around 1 ppm H2O at tropospheric conditions, the newly designed setup fulfills the static precision and accuracy requirements of the proposed airborne EC hygrometer.

Analysis of diurnal cycles of interferometric coherence and backscattering coefficient measured on an irrigated wheat field in Morocco

<p>C-band radar observations have shown a high sensitivity to the water status of vegetation, including forests and crops. Several studies conducted mainly on forests have observed daily changes of the backscattering coefficients between ascending and descending orbits and have suggested that these differences are related to the diurnal cycle of vegetation water content. Likewise, the water movement within annual crops could be associated to change of the phase centre locations leading to a daily cycle of the interferometric coherence as well that has already been observed on tropical forest using C-band in situ acquisitions. In this context, an experimental setup composed of 4C-band antennas targeting an irrigated wheat field was installed at the top of a 20 m tower near Chichaoua (Morocco) from January to June 2020. The collected data includes measurements of the backscattering coefficient at both cross- and parallel polarizations and the interferometric coherence with a 15 mns time step. The field is also equipped with an eddy-correlation station for half hourly measurements of convective fluxes, soil moisture and temperature profiles. Simultaneously, measurement of above-ground biomass, leaf area index, canopy height and surface roughness are also carried out every 15-daysduring the agricultural season.  The preliminary results of the experiment reveal the existence of strong correlation between the daily evolution of interferometric coherence and the physiological activity of wheat at dawn while the changes observed in the afternoon are ratherrelated to the wind peaks. For the backscattering coefficient, a good agreement is observed between the evolution of its daily average and the evolution of evapotranspiration. These open insights for the monitoring of the crops water status using radar dataacquired at sub-daily timescale.</p>

Improvement of the SIGMA-1 Measuring Complex for Studies of Langmuir Circulations and Surface Wave Breaking in the Black Sea

The purpose of this article is to describe modernization of SIGMA-1 measuring complex. The modernization was performed to improve the quality of research of the wave breaking mechanisms and Langmuir circulations at the stationary oceanographic platform MHI. The article deals with the effects of natural oscillations of the device and changes in the housing position on the measured components of the flow velocity vector. The device natural oscillations are recorded by a position monitoring system consisting of a set of sensors: accelerometers and a magnetometer. A model study of permissible rotations and maximum tilt angles showed that in the absence of an angular velocity sensor, the uncorrected measured components of the flow velocity vector can differ significantly from the actual ones. To solve this problem, MPU-9250 module with an accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer was chosen; Arduino Nano was used as a microcontroller system. Based on the theory of calculating spatial angles, a program for correcting the measured components of velocity pulsations for the new module was developed in Arduino IDE programming environment. The optimal program (Magneto) for calibrating the magnetometer was selected as the most accurate and satisfying the conditions of use at the oceanographic platform. The main stages of sensor calibration are described. The flow velocity components measured in the device coordinate system are adjusted for the values of tilt angles, angular and linear velocities, the calculation is performed using the eddy correlation method. The developed system has been tested on specialized equipment in laboratory setting and has the following characteristics: within the range –30…+30° the maximum pitch error is 0.31°; the maximum roll error is 0.42°; the maximum magnetometer error is 2.09°. The achieved characteristics allow significant increase in the accuracy of measuring the velocity vector and reliability estimate of influence of various physical processes on the vertical exchange.