scholarly journals Why Rolls are Prevalent in the Hurricane Boundary Layer

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
pp. 2647-2661 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralph C. Foster
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layer Flow ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Main Body ◽  
Roll Vortices ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Linear And Nonlinear ◽  
Layer Flow ◽  
Hurricane Boundary Layer

Abstract Recent remote sensing observations show that the hurricane boundary layer flow, although energetic, is not a region of homogeneous turbulence. In fact, the observations convincingly demonstrate that a large fraction of the turbulent flow in the regions away from the deep convective rainbands is highly organized into intense horizontal roll vortices that are approximately aligned with the mean wind and span the depth of the boundary layer. These observations show that rolls strongly increase the flux of momentum between the underlying surface and the main body of the storm compared to an equivalent hurricane boundary layer flow without rolls. The linear and nonlinear dynamics of hurricane boundary layer roll formation are outlined and it is shown why rolls are, in fact, the expected basic hurricane boundary layer state. The model presented here explains the hurricane roll features currently documented in field programs and makes predictions that can be tested in future experiments. The primary effects of rolls on the boundary layer fluxes are inherently nonlocal and nongradient and hence cannot be captured by standard downgradient turbulence parameterizations used in hurricane simulations. However, the nonlinear theory is the proper starting point for developing boundary layer parameterizations that include roll modification of the turbulent fluxes.

scholarly journals Mean dynamics of transitional boundary-layer flow

2011 ◽  
Vol 682 ◽  
pp. 617-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. KLEWICKI ◽  
R. EBNER ◽  
X. WU
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Reynolds Number ◽  
Reynolds Stress ◽  
Boundary Layer Flow ◽  
Layer Structure ◽  
Momentum Equation ◽  
Stress Profile ◽  
Transitional Regime ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Layer Flow

The dynamical mechanisms underlying the redistribution of mean momentum and vorticity are explored for transitional two-dimensional boundary-layer flow at nominally zero pressure gradient. The analyses primarily employ the direct numerical simulation database of Wu & Moin (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 630, 2009, p. 5), but are supplemented with verifications utilizing subsequent similar simulations. The transitional regime is taken to include both an instability stage, which effectively generates a finite Reynolds stress profile, −ρuv(y), and a nonlinear development stage, which progresses until the terms in the mean momentum equation attain the magnitude ordering of the four-layer structure revealed by Wei et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 522, 2005, p. 303). Self-consistently applied criteria reveal that the third layer of this structure forms first, followed by layers IV and then II and I. For the present flows, the four-layer structure is estimated to be first realized at a momentum thickness Reynolds number Rθ = U∞ θ/ν ≃ 780. The first-principles-based theory of Fife et al. (J. Disc. Cont. Dyn. Syst. A, vol. 24, 2009, p. 781) is used to describe the mean dynamics in the laminar, transitional and four-layer regimes. As in channel flow, the transitional regime is marked by a non-negligible influence of all three terms in the mean momentum equation at essentially all positions in the boundary layer. During the transitional regime, the action of the Reynolds stress gradient rearranges the mean viscous force and mean advection profiles. This culminates with the segregation of forces characteristic of the four-layer regime. Empirical and theoretical evidence suggests that the formation of the four-layer structure also underlies the emergence of the mean dynamical properties characteristic of the high-Reynolds-number flow. These pertain to why and where the mean velocity profile increasingly exhibits logarithmic behaviour, and how and why the Reynolds stress distribution develops such that the inner normalized position of its peak value, ym+, exhibits a Reynolds number dependence according to $y_m^+ {\,\simeq\,} 1.9 \sqrt{\delta^+}$.

scholarly journals On the Generation of Roll Vortices due to the Inflection Point Instability of the Hurricane Boundary Layer Flow

2014 ◽  
Vol 71 (11) ◽  
pp. 4292-4307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kun Gao ◽  
Isaac Ginis
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Growth Rate ◽  
Internal Waves ◽  
Mixed Layer ◽  
Inflection Point ◽  
Numerical Approach ◽  
Stable Stratification ◽  
Roll Vortices ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Hurricane Boundary Layer

Abstract Horizontal roll vortices, or rolls, are frequently observed in the hurricane boundary layer (HBL). Previous studies suggest that these rolls can be generated by the inflection point instability of the HBL flow. In this study we investigate the formation of rolls due to this mechanism in the axisymmetric HBL using a numerical approach that explicitly resolves rolls. The effects of mean HBL wind and stratification distributions on rolls are evaluated. We identify two important factors of the mean HBL wind that affect the characteristics of rolls. The dynamical HBL height affects the wavelength of rolls, and the magnitude of the mean wind shear affects the growth rate of rolls. As a result, under neutrally stratified HBL, the wavelength of rolls increases with the radius (out of the radius of maximum wind), while the growth rate of rolls decreases. The stratification also plays an important role in the generation of rolls. The stable stratification suppresses the growth of rolls because of the negative work done by the buoyancy force. Nonuniform stratification with a mixed layer has less suppressing effect on rolls. Rolls can trigger internal waves in the stably stratified layer, which have both vertically propagating and decaying properties. We derive analytical solutions for the internal waves, which relate the properties of the internal waves to the boundary layer rolls. We find the properties of the internal waves are affected by the mixed-layer height.

scholarly journals An Observational Case for the Prevalence of Roll Vortices in the Hurricane Boundary Layer*

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
pp. 2662-2673 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Morrison ◽  
Steven Businger ◽  
Frank Marks ◽  
Peter Dodge ◽  
Joost A. Businger
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Prediction Models ◽  
Weather Prediction ◽  
Doppler Velocity ◽  
Velocity Data ◽  
Roll Vortices ◽  
Secondary Circulations ◽  
Velocity Anomalies ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Hurricane Boundary Layer

Abstract Doppler velocity data from Weather Surveillance Radar-1988 Doppler (WSR-88D) radars during four hurricane landfalls are analyzed to investigate the presence of organized vortices in the hurricane boundary layer (HBL). The wavelength, depth, magnitude, and track of velocity anomalies were compiled through analysis of Doppler velocity data. The analysis reveals alternating bands of enhanced and reduced azimuthal winds closely aligned with the mean wind direction. Resulting statistics provide compelling evidence for the presence of organized secondary circulations or boundary layer rolls across significant areas during four hurricane landfalls. The results confirm previous observations of the presence of rolls in the HBL. A potential limitation of the study presented here is the resolution of the WSR-88D data. In particular, analysis of higher-resolution data (e.g., from the Doppler on Wheels) is needed to confirm that data aliasing has not unduly impacted the statistics reported here. Momentum fluxes associated with the secondary circulations are estimated using the covariance between the horizontal and vertical components of the wind fluctuations in rolls, with resulting fluxes 2–3 times greater than estimated by parameterizations in numerical weather prediction models. The observational analysis presented here, showing a prevalence of roll vortices in the HBL, has significant implications for the vertical transport of energy in hurricanes, for the character of wind damage, and for improvements in numerical simulations of hurricanes.

scholarly journals On the Equilibrium-State Roll Vortices and Their Effects in the Hurricane Boundary Layer

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 1205-1222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kun Gao ◽  
Isaac Ginis
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Wind Shear ◽  
Momentum Flux ◽  
Wind Profile ◽  
Layer Height ◽  
Roll Vortices ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Cross ◽  
Hurricane Boundary Layer ◽  
The Impact

Abstract In this study, the authors numerically simulate roll vortices (rolls) generated by the inflection-point instability in the hurricane boundary layer (HBL). The approach is based on embedding a two-dimensional high-resolution single-grid roll-resolving model (SRM) at selected horizontal grid points of an axisymmetric HBL model. The results from a set of idealized experiments indicate that the mixed-layer height is an important factor affecting the magnitude of the roll velocities and the structure of the internal waves triggered in the stably stratified layer above. This study reveals the important difference between the roll-induced cross-roll (nearly radial) and along-roll (nearly azimuthal) momentum fluxes: while the cross-roll momentum flux is well correlated to the cross-roll mean wind shear, the along-roll momentum flux is typically not correlated with the along-roll mean wind shear. Therefore, the commonly used K theory in the boundary layer parameterizations cannot reasonably capture the vertical distribution of the roll-induced along-roll momentum flux. Moreover, the authors find that the rolls induce more significant changes in the mean radial wind profile than in the mean azimuthal wind profile. Specifically, rolls reduce the inflow near surface, enhance the inflow at upper levels, and increase the inflow-layer height. Based on a linear dynamical HBL model, the authors find that the impact of rolls on the mean radial wind profile is essentially due to their redistribution effect on the mean azimuthal momentum in the HBL.

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