Abstract
A cold-air outbreak over the Mediterranean, associated with a Tramontane event, has been simulated with the atmospheric non-hydrostatic model Meso-NH using a horizontal resolution of 2 km. Results are compared with in situ aircraft, airborne lidar and satellite measurements. On average, the mean and turbulent parameters simulated in the surface layer and mixed layer compared well with in situ measurements. The model was able to reproduce accurately the Foehn effect in the wake of Cape Creus, as well as the occurence of rolls in the coastal region in connection with cloud streets observed with AVHRR. Over the sea, the threshold value of turbulent kinetic energy defining the height of the atmospheric boundary-layer top in the model (defined as 25% of the maximum turbulent kinetic energy in the profile) enables the simulated atmospheric boundary-layer height to match the one retrieved from lidar measurements. Nevertheless, the model did not handle very well the abrupt gradients of all meteorological parameters observed at the top of the atmospheric boundary-layer. Reasons for this are investigated.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bélair, S.,Lacarrè re, P.,Noilhan, J.,Masson, V., and Stein, J.: 1998, 'High-Resolution Simulation of Surface and Turbulent Fluxes during HAPEX-MOBILHY', Mon. Wea. Rev. 126, 2234-2253.
Bougeault, P.,Jansà, A.,Bénech, B.,Carissimo, B.,Pelon, J., and Richard, E.: 1990, 'Momentum Budget over the Pyrénees: The PYREX Experiment', Bull. Amer. Meteorol. Soc. 71, 806-818.
Bougeault, P. et al.: 1993, 'The Atmospheric Momentum Budget over a Major Atmospheric Mountain Range: First Results of the PYREX Program', Ann. Geophys. 11, 395-418.
Brown, R. A.: 1980, 'Longitudinal Instabilities and Secondary Flows in the Planetary Boundary-Layer: A Review', Rev. Geophys. Space Phys. 18, 683-697.
Brown, R. A. and Foster, R. C.: 1994, 'On PBL Models for General Circulation Models', Global Atmos. Ocean Sys. 2, 163-183.
Campins, J. A.,Jansà, A.,Bénech, B., and Koffi, E.: 1995, 'PYREX Observation and Diagnosis of the Tramontane Wind', Meteorol. Atmos. Phys. 56, 209-228.
Cuxart, J.,Bougeault, P., and Redelsperger, J.-L.: 2000, 'A Turbulence Scheme Allowing for Mesoscale and Large-Eddy Simulations', Quart. J. Roy. Meteorol. Soc. 126, 1-30.
Deardorff, J. W.,Willis, G. E., and Stockton, B. H.: 1980, 'Laboratory Studies of the Entrainment Zone of a Convectively Mixed Layer', J. Fluid Mech. 100, 41-64.
Etling, D. and Brown, R. A.: 1993, 'Roll Vortices in the Planetary Boundary Layer: A Review', Boundary-Layer Meteorol. 65, 215-248.
Flamant, C.: 1996, 'Étude expérimentale de la couche limite atmosphérique par lidar aéroporté dans un cas de Tramontane', Ph.D. Dissertation, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France.
Flamant, C. and Pelon, J.: 1996, 'Atmospheric Boundary-Layer Structure over the Mediterranean during a Tramontane Event', Quart. J. Roy. Meteorol. Soc. 122, 1741-1778.
Flamant, C.,Pelon, J.,Flamant, P. H., and Durand, P.: 1997, 'Lidar Determination of the Entrainment Zone Thickness at the Top of the Unstable Marine Atmospheric Boundary-Layer', Boundary-Layer Meteorol. 83, 247-284.
Garratt, J. R.,Hess, G. D.,Physick, W. L., and Bougeault, P.: 1996, 'The Atmospheric Boundary Layer-Advances in Knowledge and Application', Boundary-Layer Meteorol. 78, 9-37.
Georgelin, M. and Richard, E.: 1996, 'Numerical Simulations of Flow Diversion around the Pyrénées: A Tramontana Case Study', Mon. Wea. Rev. 124, 687-700.
Georgelin, M.,Richard, E.,Petitdidier, M., and Druilhet, A.: 1994, 'Impact of Subgrid-Scale Orography Parametrization on the Simulation of Orographic Flows', Mon. Wea. Rev. 122, 1509-1522.
Grossman, R. L.: 1982, 'An Analysis of the Vertical Velocity Spectra Obtained in the BOMEX Fair-Weather Trade-Wind Boundary-Layer', Boundary-Layer Meteorol. 23, 323-357.
Hedde, T. and Durand, P.: 1994, 'Turbulence Intensities and Bulk Coefficients in the Surface Layer above the Sea', Boundary-Layer Meteorol. 71, 415-432.
Lafore, J. P. et al.: 1998, 'The Meso-NH Atmospheric Simulation System. Part I: Adiabatic Formulation and Control Simulation', Ann. Geophys. 16, 90-109.
Masson, P.: 1994, 'Large-Eddy Simulations: A Critical Review of the Technique', Quart. J. Roy. Meteorol. Soc. 10, 1-26.
Nelson, E.,Stull, R., and Eloranta, E. W.: 1989, 'A Prognostic Relationship for Entrainment Zone Thickness', J. Appl. Meteorol. 28, 885-903.
Olafsson, H. and Bougeault, P.: 1996, 'Nonlinear Flow Past an Elliptic Mountain Ridge', J. Atmos. Sci. 53, 2465-2489.
Olafsson, H. and Bougeault, P.: 1997, 'The Effect of Rotation and Surface Friction on Orographic Drag', J. Atmos. Sci., 54, 193-210.
Russell, L. M., Lenschow, D. H.,Laursen, K. K.,Krummel, P. B.,Siems, S. T.,Bandy, A. R.,Thornton, D. C., and Bates, T. S.: 1998, 'Bidirectional Mixing in an ACE 1 Marine Boundary Layer Overlain by a Second Turbulent Layer', J. Geophys. Res. 103(D13), 16,411-16,432.
Sullivan, P. P.,Moeng, C.-H., and Stevens, B.: 1999, 'Including Radiative Effects in an Entrainment Rate Formula for Buoyancy-Driven PBLs', J. Atmos. Sci. 56, 1031-1049.
Sullivan, P. P.,Moeng, C.-H.,Stevens, B.,Lenshow, D. H., and Mayor, S. D.: 1998, 'Structure of the Entrainment Zone Capping the Convective Atmospheric Boundary Layer', J. Atmos. Sci. 55, 3042-3064.
Weckwerth, T. M.,Wilson, J. W.,Wakimoto, R. M., and Crook, N. A.: 1997, 'Horizontal Convective Rolls: Determining the Environmental Conditions Supporting their Existence and Characteristics', Mon. Wea. Rev. 125, 505-526.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Flamant, C., Georgelin, M., Menut, L. et al. The Atmospheric Boundary-Layer Structure Within A Cold Air Outbreak: Comparison Of In Situ, Lidar And Satellite Measurements With Three-Dimensional Simulations. Boundary-Layer Meteorology 99, 85–103 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018722923349
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018722923349