Junshi Ito

An Extension of the Mellor–Yamada Model to the Terra Incognita Zone for Dry Convective Mixed Layers in the Free Convection Regime

The terra incognita (TI) or grey zone arises in conventional planetary boundary-layer parametrizations when the grid resolution of a numerical model is comparable to the size of the energy-containing turbulent eddies

Revisiting the Bulk Relation for Heat Flux in the Free Convection Limit

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Near-surface coherent structures explored by large eddy simulation of entire tropical cyclones

∼1 km or less. Here, we investigate a simple, plausible extension of the Mellor–Yamada (MY) level-3 scheme for TI-scale grid size using a large-eddy simulation (LES) as a benchmark. Horizontal filtering of the benchmark simulation data for the dry convective mixed layer in the free convection regime yields subfilter-scale components whose statistics are then retrieved for various filter sizes. This leads to a modified MY level-3 scheme for TI-scale grid sizes. The proposed TI scheme incorporates: (1) modification of various length scales in the conventional MY scheme by an empirical function that depends on the horizontal grid size normalized by the convective boundary-layer height; (2) a new length scale for horizontal turbulent fluxes; and (3) a linear relationship between the local dissipation length and subfilter-scale turbulent kinetic energy. A posteriori tests of the proposed TI scheme show a much improved performance compared with the conventional MY level-3 scheme. The ratio of the grid-scale to the subgrid-scale turbulent intensity is comparable to that obtained from the filtered LES solutions. Sensitivity tests show that the modification of the dissipation length scales has the largest impact, while the new length scale for horizontal fluxes also proves important. A simulation that includes all of the above modifications results in the optimum performance.

Atmospheric Kármán Vortex Shedding from Jeju Island, East China Sea: A Numerical Study*

AbstractDust devils are small-scale vertical vortices often observed over deserts or bare land during the daytime under fair weather conditions. Previous numerical studies have demonstrated that dust devil–like vertical vortices can be simulated in idealized convective mixed layers in the absence of background winds or environmental shear. Their formation mechanism, however, has not been completely clarified. In this paper, the authors attempt to clarify the vorticity source of a dust devil–like vortex by means of a large-eddy simulation, in which a material surface initially placed in the vortex is tracked backward and the circulation on the material surface is examined. The material surface is found to originate from downdrafts, which already have sufficient circulation. As the material surface converges toward the vortex, the vorticity is increased because of conservation of circulation. It is shown that a convective mixed layer is inherently accompanied by circulation, which is scaled by a product of ...

Wind-Speed—Surface-Heat-Flux Feedback in Dust Devils

We modify the velocity applied to the bulk relation for surface heat flux using turbulent kinetic energy, such that the effect of horizontal flow induced by unresolved free convection is incorporated. Numerical experiments with a large-eddy simulation (LES) and a single-column model (SCM) are examined for an ideal convective boundary layer. The surface fluxes obtained from both models are compared to investigate the effect of the velocity correction. It is confirmed that the surface heat flux calculated with the velocity correction is relatively consistent between the LES and SCM, even for a free convection case. Furthermore, the proposed method provides an evaluation of the surface heat flux that is insensitive to the model resolution, unlike the conventional method.

Large Eddy Simulation of Dust Devils in a Diurnally-Evolving Convective Mixed Layer

AbstractDiurnal variations of an atmospheric boundary layer from 0900 LST on day 33 to 0600 LST on day 34 of the Wangara experiment are studied using a large-eddy simulation (LES) model that includes longwave radiation and baroclinicity. The present study directs its particular attention to phenomena in a residual layer (RL). As the surface heat flux decreases, an inertial oscillation is initiated and is accompanied by a low-level jet (LLJ) at a height of approximately 200 m. The maximum wind speed of the LLJ exceeds 12 m s−1 at 0300 LST on day 34. After 2100 LST on day 33, the horizontal advection due to the LLJ under a large-scale horizontal gradient of temperature destabilizes the RL and consequently induces horizontal convective rolls, parallel to a vertical wind shear (VWS) vector, between heights of 400 and 1400 m. The VWS in the layer between the bottom of the convective rolls and the gradually growing LLJ maximum is intensified after midnight, and the gradient Richardson number falls below its cri...

Large-Eddy Simulations of Dust Devils and Convective Vortices

Taking advantage of the huge computational power of a massive parallel supercomputer (K-supercomputer), this study conducts large eddy simulations of entire tropical cyclones by employing a numerical weather prediction model, and explores near-surface coherent structures. The maximum of the near-surface wind changes little from that simulated based on coarse-resolution runs. Three kinds of coherent structures appeared inside the boundary layer. The first is a Type-A roll, which is caused by an inflection-point instability of the radial flow and prevails outside the radius of maximum wind. The second is a Type-B roll that also appears to be caused by an inflection-point instability but of both radial and tangential winds. Its roll axis is almost orthogonal to the Type-A roll. The third is a Type-C roll, which occurs inside the radius of maximum wind and only near the surface. It transports horizontal momentum in an up-gradient sense and causes the largest gusts.

Large Eddy Simulation on Dust Suspension in a Convective Mixed Layer

AbstractA mesoscale atmospheric numerical model is used to simulate two cases of Karman vortex shedding in the lee of Jeju Island, South Korea, in the winter of 2013. Observed cloud patterns associated with the Karman vortex shedding are successfully reproduced. When the winter monsoon flows out from the Eurasian continent, a convective mixed layer develops through the supply of heat and moisture from the relatively warm Yellow Sea and encounters Jeju Island and dynamical conditions favorable for the formation of lee vortices are realized. Vortices that form behind the island induce updrafts to trigger cloud formation at the top of the convective boundary layer. A sensitivity experiment in which surface drag on the island is eliminated demonstrates that the formation mechanism of the atmospheric Karman vortex shedding is different from that behind a bluff body in classical fluid mechanics.