Summer shamals over the Arabian Gulf

Rao, P. Govinda; Hatwar, H. R.; Al-Sulaiti, Mohammed; Al-Mulla, Ali Hamid

doi:10.1256/wea.282.02

Cited by 17 publications

(29 citation statements)

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“…These winds are strongest in June and July, and are a result of interactions between the Saudi Arabian high and the Indian monsoonal trough, with a deeper trough forcing stronger northwesterly winds [ Heishman , 1999]. Hence, while typically sustained in midsummer, by September and October the NW winds can weaken or reverse [ Rao et al , 2003].…”

Section: Large‐scale Aerosol Features Over the Southern Arabian Gulfmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The massive post–Gulf War field effort focused on burning oil well plumes. Previous studies on the more typical conditions have either focused on large synoptic patterns in the deep desert [e.g., Ackerman and Cox , 1989; Rao et al , 2003; Alpert et al , 2004], or on isolated observations of marine boundary layer (MBL) in the middle of the AG [e.g., Brooks and Rogers , 2000; Atkinson et al , 2001]. Despite its clear importance, to our knowledge there is limited publication of combined regional aerosol and thermodynamic data.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

Reid¹,

Piketh

Walker³

et al. 2008

J. Geophys. Res.

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Experiment (UAE 2 ) was conducted in the southern Arabian Gulf region. We present atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol data collected on 18 flights by the South African Aerocommander aircraft. In the first few kilometers, we observed high concentrations of both regional dust (from 100 to 300 mg m À3 in background, to over 1.5 mg m À3 in events) and ubiquitous sulfate based pollution from the Gulf's prevalent petroleum industry (10-100 mg m À3 ). Smoke and pollution from Europe and possibly Africa were found at levels between 1.5 and 5 km. Inland, classic deep over desert boundary layer characteristics were found. Over the Arabian Gulf, dust and pollution were most often either trapped below or sequestered above a strong stable boundary. However, there were cases where a well-distributed aerosol layer crossed the inversion uniformly. Data suggest that the observed vertical profiles can be explained by the rapid formation of stable marine boundary layers as air moves offshore. This can decouple aerosol layers from within the boundary layer to those aloft in regions of vertical wind shear. In the case of pollution, the ability of flaring plumes to penetrate the inversion may also in part determine layering. In coastal regions without vertical wind shear, uniform concentrations with height across the inversion are a result of internal boundary layer development. We conclude that the bulk of the observed variability in particle vertical distribution appear to be controlled by mesoscale and microscale processes, such as the sea/land breeze.

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Section: Large‐scale Aerosol Features Over the Southern Arabian Gulfmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

Reid¹,

Piketh

Walker³

et al. 2008

J. Geophys. Res.

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“…The Shamal occurs primarily in summer and winter, with distinct synoptic forcings, duration, and intensity [ Membery , ; Rao et al ., , ; Al Senafi and Anis , ]. The summer Shamal is known as the “wind of 120 days” [ Wilkerson , ; World Meteorological Organization , ], with Shamal events lasting multiple days observed over Iraq and the Persian Gulf during May to August [ Perrone , ; Membery , ; Barth , ; Rao et al ., ]. The north‐northwesterly surface wind speed reaches up to 13 m s −1 in Qatar [ Barlett , ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rao et al . [, ] defined a Shamal event at a single Qatar station as a north‐northwesterly wind with an average speed exceeding 8.5 m s −1 during at least 3 h of the day. De Villiers [] assigned a wind speed threshold of 7.5 m s −1 for an inland site in the United Arab Emirates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Climatology of summer Shamal wind in the Middle East

et al. 2016

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The Middle Eastern Shamal is a strong north‐northwesterly wind, capable of lifting dust from the Tigris‐Euphrates basin and transporting it to the Persian Gulf and Arabian Peninsula. The present study explores the poorly understood spatial and temporal variability of summer Shamal on the diurnal, seasonal, and interannual time scales, along with its influence on dust storm activity and sensitivity to global patterns of sea surface temperature using a comprehensive set of observational data. Statistics of the summer Shamal season are quantified for the first time, including its onset, termination, duration, and the occurrence of distinct break periods. Based on a multistation criteria, the mean onset and termination of the Shamal season occur on 30 May ± 16 days (1 standard deviation) and 16 August ± 22 days, respectively. Anomalously early (late) onset and termination of the Shamal season are typically associated with La Niña (El Niño) conditions, which favor (inhibit) the development of the Iranian heat low in spring and inhibit (favor) its persistence into late summer. Dust source regions in the Tigris‐Euphrates basin and Kuwait, as well as southeastward dust transport during the summer Shamal, which cannot be detected by satellite aerosol products alone, are identified, for the first time, from the Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer plume motion vector products and confirmed by surface observations and lidar data. A close interrelationship has been revealed among summertime dust activity across the eastern Arabian Peninsula, frequency of Shamal days, and duration of the Shamal season on the interannual time scales.

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Mapping erodibility in dust source regions based on geomorphology, meteorology, and remote sensing

2014

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Mineral dust in the atmosphere has implications for Earth's radiation budget, biogeochemical cycles, hydrological cycles, human health, and visibility. Currently, the simulated vertical mass flux of dust differs greatly among the existing dust models. While most of the models utilize an erodibility factor to characterize dust sources, this factor is assumed to be static, without sufficient characterization of the highly heterogeneous and dynamic nature of dust source regions. We present a high-resolution land cover map of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in which the terrain is classified by visually examining satellite images obtained from Google Earth Professional and Environmental Systems Research Institute Basemap. We show that the correlation between surface wind speed and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer deep blue aerosol optical depth (AOD) can be used as a proxy for erodibility, which satisfactorily represents the spatiotemporal distribution of soil-derived dust sources. This method also identifies agricultural dust sources and eliminates the satellite-observed dust component that arises from long-range transport, pollution, and biomass burning. The erodible land cover of the MENA region is grouped into nine categories: (1) bedrock: with sediment, (2) sand deposit, (3) sand deposit: on bedrock, (4) sand deposit: stabilized, (5) agricultural and urban area, (6) fluvial system, (7) stony surface, (8) playa/sabkha, and (9) savanna/grassland. Our results indicate that erodibility is linked to the land cover type and has regional variation. An improved land cover map, which explicitly accounts for sediment supply, availability, and transport capacity, may be necessary to represent the highly dynamic nature of dust sources in climate models.

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Summer shamals over the Arabian Gulf

Cited by 17 publications

References 0 publications

An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

Climatology of summer Shamal wind in the Middle East

Mapping erodibility in dust source regions based on geomorphology, meteorology, and remote sensing

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Summer shamals over the Arabian Gulf

Cited by 17 publications

References 0 publications

An overview of UAE2 flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

An overview of UAE2 flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

Climatology of summer Shamal wind in the Middle East

Mapping erodibility in dust source regions based on geomorphology, meteorology, and remote sensing

Contact Info

Product

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An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf

An overview of UAE² flight operations: Observations of summertime atmospheric thermodynamic and aerosol profiles of the southern Arabian Gulf