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Evening and Morning Transition of Katabatic Flows

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Abstract

An experimental investigation of the evening and morning transition phases of katabatic slope flows has been conducted to identify the mechanisms for their development and destruction over an isolated slope. The momentum and energy equations of the flow have been used to describe these mechanisms for the particular topographic features of the studied slope, and to outline the differences from the dynamics of well-developed simple slope flows. In the lowest portion of the slope, frontal characteristics have been identified in early evening periods when the local pre-existing near-surface thermal structure does not impose a katabatic acceleration. The frontal shape is determined by the near-surface thermal stability and ambient wind. The flow initiation is distinctly different when it is linked to the local surface cooling, in which case it develops gradually and produces a slight local warming.

The erosion of the katabatic layer at mid-slope precedes that at the foot and is closely linked to dilution of the local surface inversion. The flow erosion at the foot is often delayed, as the warming of air proceeds uniformly at all heights near the ground, so maintaining the inversion due to warming produced by mixing and advective processes linked to the upslope flow development. The latter initiates first at mid-slope and then at the foot, where for a non-negligible time period it flows over the persistent katabatic flow. The prerequisite for the development of this structure is the maintenance of a shallow inversion in the first 2–3 m above the ground surface.

The morning dilution of the katabatic flow is apparently different from common experience over simple slopes and may be attributed to the steep upper portion of the slope in association with its easterly orientation, which results in strong non-uniformity of the solar heating along the slope.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Meteorology, Physics Department, Athens University, Greece

    K. H. Papadopoulos & C. G. Helmis

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  1. K. H. Papadopoulos
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  2. C. G. Helmis
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Papadopoulos, K.H., Helmis, C.G. Evening and Morning Transition of Katabatic Flows. Boundary-Layer Meteorology 92, 195–227 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1002070526425

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