scholarly journals Gravity Wave Dynamics in a Mesospheric Inversion Layer: 2. Instabilities, Turbulence, Fluxes, and Mixing

2018 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 649-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Fritts ◽  
Ling Wang ◽  
Brian Laughman ◽  
Thomas S. Lund ◽  
Richard L. Collins
2018 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 626-648 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Fritts ◽  
Brian Laughman ◽  
Ling Wang ◽  
Thomas S. Lund ◽  
Richard L. Collins

2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (10) ◽  
pp. 4249-4275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonja Gisinger ◽  
Andreas Dörnbrack ◽  
Vivien Matthias ◽  
James D. Doyle ◽  
Stephen D. Eckermann ◽  
...  

This paper describes the results of a comprehensive analysis of the atmospheric conditions during the Deep Propagating Gravity Wave Experiment (DEEPWAVE) campaign in austral winter 2014. Different datasets and diagnostics are combined to characterize the background atmosphere from the troposphere to the upper mesosphere. How weather regimes and the atmospheric state compare to climatological conditions is reported upon and how they relate to the airborne and ground-based gravity wave observations is also explored. Key results of this study are the dominance of tropospheric blocking situations and low-level southwesterly flows over New Zealand during June–August 2014. A varying tropopause inversion layer was found to be connected to varying vertical energy fluxes and is, therefore, an important feature with respect to wave reflection. The subtropical jet was frequently diverted south from its climatological position at 30°S and was most often involved in strong forcing events of mountain waves at the Southern Alps. The polar front jet was typically responsible for moderate and weak tropospheric forcing of mountain waves. The stratospheric planetary wave activity amplified in July leading to a displacement of the Antarctic polar vortex. This reduced the stratospheric wind minimum by about 10 m s−1 above New Zealand making breaking of large-amplitude gravity waves more likely. Satellite observations in the upper stratosphere revealed that orographic gravity wave variances for 2014 were largest in May–July (i.e., the period of the DEEPWAVE field phase).


Author(s):  
Volker Roeber ◽  
J. Dylan Nestler ◽  
Jonas Pinault ◽  
Assaf Azouri ◽  
Florian Bellafont

Phase-resolving numerical models are a powerful tool to identify and analyze dominant wave processes along a site of interest. We have carried out a numerical study related to infra-gravity wave dynamics along the French Basque coast. The computed scenarios are representative for the swell conditions at the site of interest and include variations in offshore wave height, direction, and water level. Several statistical methods were employed that illustrate that the irregular bathymetry is a key component for the strong variations in sea-swell and IG-wave energy. The water level is demonstrated to substantially affect the IG-wave behavior, more than the wave direction. Swash oscillations in the IG-frequency band are greater than or equal to sea-swell swash oscillations at nearly all locations along the studied shoreline.Recorded Presentation from the vICCE (YouTube Link): https://youtu.be/ELZwJCokkX0


2019 ◽  
Vol 124 (14) ◽  
pp. 7512-7522
Author(s):  
Yehui Zhang ◽  
Shaodong Zhang ◽  
Chunming Huang ◽  
Kaiming Huang ◽  
Yun Gong

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xianchang Yue ◽  
Jonathan S. Friedman ◽  
Qihou Zhou ◽  
Xiongbin Wu ◽  
Jens Lautenbach

Abstract. 11-years long K Doppler lidar observations of temperature profiles in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) between 85 and 100 km, conducted at the Arecibo Observatory, Puerto Rico (18.35° N, 66.75° W), are used to estimate seasonal variations of the mean temperature, the squared Brunt-Väisälä frequency, and the gravity wave potential energy in a composite year. The following unique features are obtained: (1) The mean temperature structure shows similar characteristics as a prior report based on a smaller dataset: (2) The profiles of the squared Brunt-Väisälä frequency usually reach the maxima at or just below the temperature inversion layer when that layer is present. The first complete range-resolved climatology of potential energy of temperature fluctuations in the tropical MLT exhibits an altitude dependent combination of annual oscillation (AO) and semiannual oscillation (SAO). Between 88 to 96 km altitude, the amplitudes of AO and SAO are comparable, and their phases are almost the same and quite close to day of year (DOY) 100. Below 88 km, the SAO amplitude is significantly larger than AO and the AO phase shifts to DOY 200 and after. At 97 to 98 km altitude, the amplitudes of AO and SAO reach their minima, and both phases shift significantly. Above that, the AO amplitude becomes greater. The annual mean potential energy profile reaches the minimum at 91 to 92 km altitude. The altitude-dependent SAO of the potential energy is found to be highly correlated with the satellite observed mean zonal winds reported in the literature.


2018 ◽  
Vol 146 (8) ◽  
pp. 2639-2666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Eckermann ◽  
Jun Ma ◽  
Karl W. Hoppel ◽  
David D. Kuhl ◽  
Douglas R. Allen ◽  
...  

AbstractA data assimilation system (DAS) is described for global atmospheric reanalysis from 0- to 100-km altitude. We apply it to the 2014 austral winter of the Deep Propagating Gravity Wave Experiment (DEEPWAVE), an international field campaign focused on gravity wave dynamics from 0 to 100 km, where an absence of reanalysis above 60 km inhibits research. Four experiments were performed from April to September 2014 and assessed for reanalysis skill above 50 km. A four-dimensional variational (4DVAR) run specified initial background error covariances statically. A hybrid-4DVAR (HYBRID) run formed background error covariances from an 80-member forecast ensemble blended with a static estimate. Each configuration was run at low and high horizontal resolution. In addition to operational observations below 50 km, each experiment assimilated 105 observations of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) every 6 h. While all MLT reanalyses show skill relative to independent wind and temperature measurements, HYBRID outperforms 4DVAR. MLT fields at 1-h resolution (6-h analysis and 1–5-h forecasts) outperform 6-h analysis alone due to a migrating semidiurnal (SW2) tide that dominates MLT dynamics and is temporally aliased in 6-h time series. MLT reanalyses reproduce observed SW2 winds and temperatures, including phase structures and 10–15-day amplitude vacillations. The 0–100-km reanalyses reveal quasi-stationary planetary waves splitting the stratopause jet in July over New Zealand, decaying from 50 to 80 km then reintensifying above 80 km, most likely via MLT forcing due to zonal asymmetries in stratospheric gravity wave filtering.


2015 ◽  
Vol 120 (16) ◽  
pp. 8099-8111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yehui Zhang ◽  
Shaodong Zhang ◽  
Chunming Huang ◽  
Kaiming Huang ◽  
Yun Gong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  

2021 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 209-227
Author(s):  
Fiaz Ahmed ◽  
J. David Neelin ◽  
Ángel F. Adames

AbstractConvective quasi-equilibrium (QE) and weak temperature gradient (WTG) balances are frequently employed to study the tropical atmosphere. This study uses linearized equatorial beta-plane solutions to examine the relevant regimes for these balances. Wave solutions are characterized by moisture–temperature ratio (q–T ratio) and dominant thermodynamic balances. An empirically constrained precipitation closure assigns different sensitivities of convection to temperature (εt) and moisture (εq). Longwave equatorial Kelvin and Rossby waves tend toward the QE balance with q–T ratios of εt:εq that can be ~1–3. Departures from strict QE, essential to both precipitation and wave dynamics, grow with wavenumber. The propagating QE modes have reduced phase speeds because of the effective gross moist stability meff, with a further reduction when εt > 0. Moisture modes obeying the WTG balance and with large q–T ratios (>10) emerge in the shortwave regime; these modes exist with both Kelvin and Rossby wave meridional structures. In the υ = 0 case, long propagating gravity waves are absent and only emerge beyond a cutoff wavenumber. Two bifurcations in the wave solutions are identified and used to locate the spatial scales for QE–WTG transition and gravity wave emergence. These scales are governed by the competition between the convection and gravity wave adjustment times and are modulated by meff. Near-zero values of meff shift the QE–WTG transition wavenumber toward zero. Continuous transitions replace the bifurcations when meff < 0 or moisture advection/WISHE mechanisms are included, but the wavenumber-dependent QE and WTG balances remain qualitatively unaltered. Rapidly decaying convective/gravity wave modes adjust to the slowly evolving QE/WTG state in the longwave/shortwave regimes, respectively.


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