Mark M. Wheeler

Verification of high-resolution RAMS forecasts over east-central Florida during the 1999 and 2000 summer months

This paper presents an objective and subjective verification of a high-resolution configuration of the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) over east-central Florida during the 1999 and 2000 summer months. Centered on the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), the innermost nested grid of RAMS has a horizontal grid spacing of 1.25 km, thereby providing forecasts capable of modeling finescale phenomena such as ocean and river breezes, and convection. The RAMS is run operationally at CCAFS within the Eastern Range Dispersion Assessment System (ERDAS), in order to provide emergency response guidance during space operations. ERDAS uses RAMS wind and temperature fields for input into ERDAS diffusion algorithms; therefore, the accuracy of dispersion predictions is highly dependent on the accuracy of RAMS forecasts. The most substantial error in RAMS over east-central Florida is a surface-based cold temperature bias, primarily during the daylight hours. At the Shuttle Landing Facility, the RAMS point error statistics are not substantially different than the National Centers for Environment Prediction Eta Model; however, an objective evaluation consisting of only point error statistics cannot adequately determine the added value of a high-resolution model configuration. Thus, results from a subjective evaluation of the RAMS forecast sea breeze and thunderstorm initiation on the 1.25-km grid are also presented. According to the subjective verification of the Florida east coast sea breeze, the RAMS categorical and skill scores exceeded that of the Eta Model predictions in most instances. The RAMS skill scores in predicting thunderstorm initiation are much lower than the sea-breeze evaluation scores, likely resulting from the lack of a sophisticated data assimilation scheme in the current operational configuration.

A 7-Yr Climatological Study of Land Breezes over the Florida Spaceport

Abstract Seven years of wind and temperature data from a high-resolution network of 44 towers at the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station were used to develop an objective method for identifying land breezes, which are defined as seaward-moving wind shift lines in this study. The favored meteorological conditions for land breezes consisted of surface high pressure in the vicinity of the Florida peninsula, mainly clear skies, and light synoptic onshore flow and/or the occurrence of a sea breeze during the afternoon preceding a land breeze. The land breeze characteristics are examined for two events occurring under different weather regimes—one with light synoptic onshore flow and no daytime sea breeze, and another following a daytime sea breeze under a prevailing offshore flow. Land breezes were found to occur over east-central Florida in all months of the year and had varied onset times and circulation depths. Land breezes were most common in the spring and summer months and least com...

Nowcasting thunderstorm anvil clouds over Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

Abstract Electrified thunderstorm anvil clouds extend the threat of natural and triggered lightning to space launch and landing operations far beyond the immediate vicinity of thunderstorm cells. The deep convective updrafts of thunderstorms transport large amounts of water vapor, supercooled water droplets, and ice crystals into the upper troposphere, forming anvil clouds, which are then carried downstream by the prevailing winds in the anvil-formation layer. Electrified anvil clouds have been observed over the space launch and landing facilities of the John F. Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), emanating from thunderstorm activity more than 200 km away. Space launch commit criteria and flight rules require launch and landing vehicles to avoid penetration of the nontransparent portion of anvil clouds. The life cycles of 163 anvil clouds over the Florida peninsula and its coastal waters were documented using Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-8 visible...