AGS FIRP Track 2: Boundary-layer Evolution and Structure of Tornadoes (BEST)

龙卷风的风力有多大？它们是如何造成损害的？是什么原因导致一些龙卷风更强烈，而另一些更弱？我们如何才能建造得更好，以降低龙卷风的风险？为了更好地回答这些问题，需要在龙卷风及其附近进行观测。但是，非常接近地面、人们居住的地方以及龙卷风内部的观测非常罕见，因为它们很难预测，更难观察到。一些罕见的观测显示，龙卷风的时速可以超过300英里，而且最强的风非常接近地面，在那里它们特别难测量。为了减轻龙卷风造成的危害，更好地了解龙卷风的基本结构和强度至关重要。龙卷风的边界层演变和结构(BEST)项目将解决其中的一些问题，在龙卷风及其附近部署移动雷达、龙卷风吊舱和SarmSonde气球。目标是解决龙卷风的结构、演变、风的强度以及龙卷风附近的温度和湿度，这些因素可能会影响龙卷风的强度。BEST还将检查在龙卷风及其附近收集的数十年移动雷达和其他数据，以更好地了解它们有多强、多大和潜在的破坏性。BEST是对龙卷风结构和演变的多重点研究。百思买计划了一个现场阶段，在此阶段，将通过近距离部署的陶氏雷达、龙卷风吊舱和SarmSonde Lagrangian漂移气球收集前所未有的精细运动学和热力学数据。3-6公里的双陶氏基线将首次允许对龙卷风矢量风结构进行综合测绘，并结合密集部署的龙卷风吊舱和热声探测仪提供的详细热力学测绘。百思买将把这些新数据与一个独特的数据库进行比较，该数据库记录了200多场独特的龙卷风。其中约20个包括双多普勒矢量风分辨数据。其中一个包括在一个非常大的多涡旋龙卷风附近进行的非常偶然的3公里基线双道指部署的数据，双多普勒数据唯一地解析了次龙卷风涡旋的结构和演变。BEST的一个关键方面是结合了对罕见或非常偶然观察到的事件的单案例研究分析，以及对几到200多个事件的更广泛的统计分析。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

How strong are the winds in tornadoes? How do they cause damage? What causes some tornadoes to be intense and others weaker? How can we build better to reduce the risks from tornadoes? Observations in and near tornadoes are needed to better answer these questions. But, observations very near the ground, where people live, and inside tornadoes are very rare since they are difficult to predict and even harder to observe. Some, rare, observations show that tornado winds can exceed 300 mph, and that the most intense winds are very near the ground, where they are especially hard to measure. In order to mitigate the hazards posed by tornadoes, it is critical to better understand their basic structure and intensity. The Boundary-layer Evolution and Structure of Tornadoes (BEST) project will address some of these questions, deploying mobile radars, Tornado Pods, and SwarmSonde balloons in and near tornadoes. The goal is to resolve tornado structure, evolution, the intensity of winds, and the temperatures and humidities near tornadoes that likely affect how intense they are. BEST will also examine decades of mobile radar and other data collected in and near tornadoes to better understand how strong, large, and potentially damaging they are.BEST is a multi-focus study of tornado structure and evolution. BEST plans a field phase during which unprecedentedly-fine scale kinematic and thermodynamic data will be collected by proximately-deployed DOW radars, Tornado Pods, and SwarmSonde lagrangian drifter balloons. Dual-DOW baselines of 3-6 km will allow, for the first time, integrated mapping of tornado vector wind structures combined with detailed thermodynamic mapping provided with the densely-deployed Tornado Pods and SwarmSondes. BEST will compare these new data with a unique database of DOW wind measurements over 200 unique tornadoes. Approximately 20 of these include dual-Doppler vector wind resolving data. One includes data from an extremely fortuitous 3 km - baseline dual-DOW deployment near a very large multi-vortex tornado, with dual-Doppler data uniquely resolving the structure and evolution of sub-tornado vortices. A critical aspect of BEST is the combination of single-case study analysis of rare or very fortuitously observed events, with broader statistical analysis of several to over 200 events.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.