Observational and Theoretical Study of the Baroclinic Boundary Layer Processes During GALE

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The rapid development and intensification of winter cyclones in coastal regions presents a major weather forecasting problem. Along the eastern seaboard, the development of cyclonic storms and frontal systems often occurs along the coastal region of the Carolinas. These weather systems may lead to severe weather in the heavily populated Northeast Corridor in the form of freezing rain, heavy snowfall, blizzards and extensive coastal erosion. In order to study these phenomena, the National Science Foundation sponsored an intensive field investigation known as the Genesis of Atlantic Lows Experiment (GALE). The field phase of the GALE was a two-month, multiagency endeavor executed during the winter of 1986. As part of the GALE, the Principal Investigator was instrumental in designing and implementing a network to study the redistribution of heat and moisture in the lowest three kilometers of the atmosphere over the ocean which is known as the marine boundary layer (MBL). The MBL and ocean-atmosphere interaction processes appear to play an important role in the genesis of cyclones or in the intensification of an existing cyclone. Preliminary analysis of the data has shown exceptionally large heat fluxes in the vicinity of the Gulf Stream. The Principal Investigator will continue his work on the MBL using a combination of data collected during the GALE and numerical models. One goal is to test and formulate new approximations for boundary layer processes which can be used in numerical weather forecast models.