Abstract View
Monthly Weather Review
Article: pp. 1443–1462 | Full Text | PDF (868K)
Evaluation of Large-Eddy Simulations via Observations of Nocturnal Marine Stratocumulus
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California
Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Hamburg, Germany
Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, Utrecht, Netherlands
IBM Business Consulting Services, Boulder, Colorado
National Research Council, Naval Research Laboratory, Monterey, California
Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado
School of Engineering, University of Tasmania, Tasmania, Australia
MAE Department, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia
Met Office, Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California
(Manuscript received 15 September 2004, in final form 5 November 2004)
DOI: 10.1175/MWR2930.1
Data from the first research flight (RF01) of the second Dynamics and Chemistry of Marine Stratocumulus (DYCOMS-II) field study are used to evaluate the fidelity with which large-eddy simulations (LESs) can represent the turbulent structure of stratocumulus-topped boundary layers. The initial data and forcings for this case placed it in an interesting part of parameter space, near the boundary where cloud-top mixing is thought to render the cloud layer unstable on the one hand, or tending toward a decoupled structure on the other hand. The basis of this evaluation consists of sixteen 4-h simulations from 10 modeling centers over grids whose vertical spacing was 5 m at the cloud-top interface and whose horizontal spacing was 35 m. Extensive sensitivity studies of both the configuration of the case and the numerical setup also enhanced the analysis. Overall it was found that (i) if efforts are made to reduce spurious mixing at cloud top, either by refining the vertical grid or limiting the effects of the subgrid model in this region, then the observed turbulent and thermodynamic structure of the layer can be reproduced with some fidelity; (ii) the base, or native configuration of most simulations greatly overestimated mixing at cloud top, tending toward a decoupled layer in which cloud liquid water path and turbulent intensities were grossly underestimated; (iii) the sensitivity of the simulations to the representation of mixing at cloud top is, to a certain extent, amplified by particulars of this case. Overall the results suggest that the use of LESs to map out the behavior of the stratocumulus-topped boundary layer in this interesting region of parameter space requires a more compelling representation of processes at cloud top. In the absence of significant leaps in the understanding of subgrid-scale (SGS) physics, such a representation can only be achieved by a significant refinement in resolution—a refinement that, while conceivable given existing resources, is probably still beyond the reach of most centers.
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