Wind shear

About: Wind shear is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 8023 publications have been published within this topic receiving 185373 citations.

Environmental controls on pyrocumulus and pyrocumulonimbus initiation and development

Abstract: . In this paper we present the first direct observational evidence that the condensation level in pyrocumulus and pyrocumulonimbus clouds can be significantly higher than the ambient lifted condensation level. In addition, we show that the environmental thermodynamic profile, day-to-day variations in humidity, and ambient wind shear all exert significant influence over the onset and development of pyroconvective clouds. These findings are established using a scanning Doppler lidar and mobile radiosonde system during two large wildfires in northern California, the Bald Fire and the Rocky Fire. The lidar is used to distinguish liquid water from smoke backscatter during the plume rise, and thus provides a direct detection of plume condensations levels. Plume tops are subsequently determined from both the lidar and nearby radar observations. The radiosonde data, obtained adjacent to the fires, contextualize the lidar and radar observations, and enable estimates of the plume ascent, convective available potential energy, and equilibrium level. A noteworthy finding is that in these cases, the convective condensation level, not the lifted condensation level, provides the best estimate of the pyrocumulus initiation height.

Tropical cyclone genesis in the Southern Hemisphere and its relationship with the ENSO

Abstract: Tropical cyclogenesis climatology over the South Indian and South Pacific Oceans has been developed using a new tropical cyclone (TC) archive for the Southern Hemisphere, and changes in geographical distribution of areas favourable for TC genesis related to changes in the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phases have been investigated. To explain these changes, large-scale environmental variables which influence TC genesis and development such as sea surface temperatures (SSTs), relative humidity in mid-troposphere, vertical wind shear and lower tropospheric vorticity have been examined. In the South Indian Ocean, reduction of TC genesis in the western part of the basin and its increase in the eastern part as well as displacement of the area favourable for TC genesis further away from the equator during La Nina events compared to El Nino events can be explained by changes in geographical distribution of relative humidity and vorticity across the basin as primary contributors; positive anomalies of SSTs observed during La Nina seasons in the eastern part of the basin additionally contribute to enhanced cyclogenesis near the Western Australia. In the South Pacific Ocean, changes in geographical distribution of relative humidity and vorticity appear to be the key large-scale environmental factors responsible for enhanced TC genesis in the eastern (western) part of the basin as well as for the northeast (southwest) shift of points of cyclogenesis during El Nino (La Nina) events, with vertical wind shear and SSTs as additional contributing large-scale environmental variables.

The Life Cycle of a Thunderstorm in Three Dimensions

Abstract: The results of an isolated three-dimensional thunderstorm simulation are reported. An initial wind shear of 1.54 m sec−1 km−1 is specified in the x direction and symmetry is assumed in the y direction about the central x-z plane. An erect cloud develops from an initial 3.7 km radius impulse as the updraft core is fed from all directions by moist and warm low-level air. After some time rain begins to fall and a downdraft developes downshear of the updraft core cutting off the major low-level supply of warm and moist air. Subsequently, the updraft core begins to tilt downshear and the center of the lower part of the updraft core is shifted away from the central x–z plane. At middle cloud levels wind features reminiscent of flow about a cylinder are present. Both the hydrostatic and dynamic pressure appear to be important in decelerating flow upwind of the cloud. Comparison with a similar two-dimensional simulation indicates that the three-dimensional cloud develops faster, grows taller, lasts longe...

Observing and Simulating the Summertime Low-Level Jet in Central Iowa

Abstract: In the U.S. state of Iowa, the increase in wind power production has motivated interest into the impacts of low-level jets on turbine performance. In this study, two commercial lidar systems were used to sample wind profiles in August 2013. Jets were systematically detected and assigned an intensity rating from 0 (weak) to 3 (strong). Many similarities were found between observed jets and the well-studied Great Plains low-level jet in summer, including average jet heights between 300 and 500 m above ground level, a preference for southerly wind directions, and a nighttime bias for stronger jets. Strong vertical wind shear and veer were observed, as well as veering over time associated with the LLJs. Speed, shear, and veer increases extended into the turbine-rotor layer during intense jets. Ramp events, in which winds rapidly increase or decrease in the rotor layer, were also commonly observed during jet formation periods. The lidar data were also used to evaluate various configurations of the Weat...

The Effect of Forest on Mesoscale Rainfall: An Example from HAPEX-MOBILHY

Abstract: A meso-β-scale model is used to model a frontal intrusion in southwest France during HAPEX-MOBILHY. The skill of the model to reproduce the observed variation in temperature, humidity, and wind speed over the domain is reasonable within the limitations of the model parameterizations and initialization procedure, although there were errors in the timing and positioning of the front. A stable boundary layer was both observed and modeled over the forested area. The associated negative sensible heat flux provided the energy to sustain evaporation from the wet forest canopy under conditions of low radiation. A large wind shear over the stably stratified boundary layer provided the required turbulent kinetic energy to maintain the downward transport of sensible heat. Sensitivity experiments showed that local rainfall with a full forest cover changed from 2.9 to 3.8 mm, which represents a 30% increase when compared with a bare-soil domain. Half of this increase is from positive feedback of the intercept...