Gravity wave breaking over Gravity wave breaking over the central Alps: Role of the central Alps: Role of complex topography complex topography Qingfang Jiang, UCAR/NRL, Monterey James D. Doyle, NRL, Monterey, CA Acknowledgements: MAP scientists and staff.
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Gravity wave breaking over the central Alps: Role of complex topography Qingfang Jiang, UCAR/NRL, Monterey James D. Doyle, NRL, Monterey, CA Acknowledgements:
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Gravity wave breaking over the central Gravity wave breaking over the central Alps: Role of complex topographyAlps: Role of complex topography
Qingfang Jiang, UCAR/NRL, Monterey
James D. Doyle, NRL, Monterey, CA
Acknowledgements: MAP scientists and staff.
COAMPS Grid 1
1200 UTC (6 h) October 21, 1999
Terrain (gray scale)
Wind vectors (500mb)
Geopotential Height Contours
(500mb)
Large Scale Conditions
Terrain
Electra flight track
Turbulence
Upstream Sounding
SABL + Vertical Displacement
0
(x) (w / U)dx
GPS Dropsonde Trajectories1 2 3 4 5 7 6
100km
20km
309
311
307
1 2 3 4 5 7 6
Manual Isentropic Analysis of GPS Dropsonde Data
309
311
307
1 2 3 4 5 7 6
Manual Isentropic Analysis of GPS Dropsonde Data
Along Flight Track Wind Component
21
5
-2
5
20
Vipiteno Soundings (0600, 0900 UTC)
V (m/s)
W (m/s)
Potential temp. (K)
Terrain (m)
Flight Level Data Examples
TKE, Leg1
TKE, Leg2
Buoyancy Production Rates
Terrain
Turbulent Kinetic Energy
COAMPS, 4th mesh (~1 km)
Potential temperature
(solid contours)
Along flight wind component
(in grayscale)
Turbulent kinetic energy
(dashed lines)
COAMPS 2D Idealized Simulations
Smooth terrain Smaller-scale terrain superposed on the lee-slope
h=hw + hm*[1-cos(2πkx/a)]
Drag vs. Wave Number of Small Scale Terrain
h=hw+hm*[1-cos(2πkx/a)]
Where,
hw: is the large-scale terrain height,
a: is the large-scale terrain width,
k: is the small scale terrain wave number
Conclusions
• The observed wave-breaking event was associated with the presence of a critical level, backward wind shear, and small Richardson number.
• GPS dropsondes observed strong flow descent associated with severe down-slope winds, and local convective instability in breaking regions. The structure of the wave-breaking section resembles a hydraulic jump.
• The underlying terrain and observed waves show multiscale features.
• Idealized simulations indicate that small-scale terrain superposed on larger scale terrain promotes wave breaking and enhances downslope winds, turbulence, and drag.