The Lake Tekapo Experiment (LTEX): An Investigation of Atmospheric Boundary Layer Processes in Complex Terrain

Sturman, Andrew; Bradley, Stuart; Grant, K. E.; Gudiksen, P.H.; Koßmann, M.; McGowan, Hamish A.; Oliphant, A. J.; Owens, I. F.; Powell, Steven P.; Spronken‐Smith, Rachel; Zawar-Reza, Peyman

doi:10.1175/bams-84-3-371

Cited by 13 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 32 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…CAPs have been observed in basins and valleys and other types of terrain depressions in countries with large alpine regions, including Japan [ Kondo et al ., ; Kudoh et al ., ; Magono et al ., ; Nakamura and Magono , ], Slovenia and Croatia [ Petkovsek , , , ; Vrhovec , ], Austria [ Eisenbach et al ., ; Steinacker et al ., ; Whiteman et al ., , , ], New Zealand [ Kossmann et al ., ; Sturman et al ., , ], Canada [ Sakiyama , ], and the United States [ Allwine et al ., ; Banta , ; Clements et al ., ; Reeves and Stensrud , ; Whiteman et al ., , ; Wolyn and Mckee , ; Yao and Zhong , ]. Because of the difficulty in making long‐term field observations in harsh wintertime condition in mountainous terrain, the majority of the observational studies have focused on the characteristics of the diurnal CAPs and the processes leading to their formation and removal.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A numerical study of a persistent cold air pool episode in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah

Lü

Zhong

2014

J. Geophys. Res. Atmos.

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The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is used to simulate a persistent cold air pool (CAP) episode observed in December 2010 during the Persistent Cold Air Pool Study (PCAPS) field campaign in Salt Lake Valley, Utah. The availability of intensive observations from PCAPS, especially the added vertical profiles, allows for an in-depth analysis of CAP structure and evolution and model evaluation beyond what was done in similar work before. Comparisons of the WRF simulation with surface observations and upper air soundings indicate that WRF is capable of simulating the observed spatial and temporal variation of the valley atmosphere during the CAP episode. The model also successfully captures the formation and removal of the persistent temperature inversion. Process analysis helps quantify the contribution of various physical processes to the buildup and breakup of the inversion. The inversion developed due primarily to a rapid warming above the valley by synoptic subsidence and warm advection and to strong radiative cooling within the valley under clear sky conditions. The inversion was lifted when strong southerly winds entered the valley from the gap mixing out the cold air in the valley. Synoptic-scale cold advection above the valley contributed to the inversion removal by weakening the inversion from aloft. Sensitivity experiments suggested that the WRF simulation of the CAP episode is more sensitive to large-scale initialization fields with North American Mesoscale Model outperforming North American Regional Reanalysis and National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Eta analysis than to the choice of boundary layer parameterizations and land surface models.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A numerical study of a persistent cold air pool episode in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah

Lü

Zhong

2014

J. Geophys. Res. Atmos.

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“…As discussed by Segal et al (1997) and Shen (1998), intense lake breezes are often found in the vicinity of lakes located in arid regions such as the GSL basin. However, the development and intensity of the lake breeze in mountain basins can be affected significantly by interactions with the ambient large-scale flow and other thermally driven flows (Rife et al 2002;Stivari et al 2003;Sturman et al 2003;Cox 2006). Although sea-and lake-breeze fronts elsewhere are frequently accompanied by precipitation, most lake-breeze fronts in the SLV are not (a noticeable exception is the tornadic environment on 11 August 1999; Dunn and Vasiloff 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lake-Breeze Fronts in the Salt Lake Valley

Zumpfe

Horel

2007

Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology

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Winds at the Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) during the April-October period from 1948 to 2003 have been observed to shift to the north (up-valley direction) between late morning and afternoon on over 70% of the days without precipitation. Lake-breeze fronts that develop as a result of the differential heating between the air over the nearby Great Salt Lake and that over the lake's surroundings are observed at SLC only a few times each month. Fewer lake-breeze fronts are observed during late July-early September than before or after that period. Interannual fluctuations in the areal extent of the shallow Great Salt Lake contribute to year-to-year variations in the number of lake-breeze frontal passages at SLC. Data collected during the Vertical Transport and Mixing Experiment (VTMX) of October 2000 are used to examine the structure and evolution of a lake-breeze front that moved through the Salt Lake Valley on 17 October. The onset of upslope and up-valley winds occurred within the valley prior to the passage of the lake-breeze front. The lake-breeze front moved at roughly 3 m s Ϫ1 up the valley and was characterized near the surface by an abrupt increase in wind speed and dewpoint temperature over a distance of 3-4 km. Rapid vertical mixing of aerosols at the top of the 600-800-m-deep boundary layer was evident as the front passed.

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“…RAMS solves the non-hydrostatic, compressible momentum equations and a thermodynamic equation in a terrain-following coordinates system. The ability of RAMS in producing realistic atmospheric circulations in complex terrain has already been demonstrated by a number of studies, including mountainous terrains (Bossert and Cotton, 1994a,b), lakes (Sturman et al, 2003) and coastal regions (Cai and Steyn, 2000).…”

Section: Regional Atmospheric Modelmentioning

confidence: 95%

The role of the wind in the formation of coherent eddies in the Gulf of Eilat/Aqaba

Afargan

Gildor

2015

Journal of Marine Systems

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The Lake Tekapo Experiment (LTEX): An Investigation of Atmospheric Boundary Layer Processes in Complex Terrain

Abstract: Understanding atmospheric processes operating at a range of spatial and temporal scales is paramount in explaining local wind fields and boundary layer characteristics in mountainous terrain.

Cited by 13 publications

References 32 publications

A numerical study of a persistent cold air pool episode in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah

A numerical study of a persistent cold air pool episode in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah

Lake-Breeze Fronts in the Salt Lake Valley

The role of the wind in the formation of coherent eddies in the Gulf of Eilat/Aqaba

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