Observing ice clouds with a Doppler cloud radar

Cloud systems containing ice particles (“ice clouds”) must be realistically represented in numerical models devoted to weather forecasting and climate projection. Nevertheless, such clouds have not been fully characterized. The RadOn method (after Radar Only) has been developed for estimating microphysical properties of ice clouds from Doppler cloud radar observations. This method is here updated and applied to observations conducted in 2003–2004 with the Doppler cloud radar RASTA at the SIRTA observatory (Palaiseau, near Paris).     

基于JASMIN框架的区域大气模式并行程序开发及试验

以自主研制的区域中尺度暴雨大气模式为研究对象,基于JASMIN并行编程框架,建立构件化、层次化的区域大气模式大规模高效并行程序,并针对典型天气实例,对模式并行计算程序的正确性、并行性能及高分辨率模拟效果进行验证.结果证明,基于JASMIN框架的新模式程序与原串行模式具有很好的计算一致性,其不仅能保持原有模式良好的预报效果,且能显著提升模式大规模并行计算性能和可扩展性,在进一步提高模式分辨率后能得到更好的预报结果.     

Jupiter's Great Red Spot and zonal winds as a self-consistent,one-layer,quasigeostrophic flow

We present the point of view that both the vortices and the east-west zonal winds of Jupiter are confined to the planet's shallow weather layer and that their dynamics is completely described by the weakly dissipated, weakly forced quasigeostrophic (QG) equation. The weather layer is the region just below the tropopause and contains the visible clouds. The forcing mimics the overshoot of fluid from an underlying convection zone. The late-time solutions of the weakly forced and dissipated QG equations appear to be a small subset of the unforced and undissipated equations and are robust attractors. We illustrate QG vortex dynamics and attempt to explain the important features of Jupiter's Great Red Spot and other vortices: their shapes, locations with respect to the extrema of the east-west winds, stagnation points, numbers as a function of latitude, mergers, break-ups, cloud morphologies, internal distributions of vorticity, and signs of rotation with respect to both the planet's rotation and the shear of their surrounding east-west winds. Initial-value calculations in which the weather layer starts at rest produce oscillatory east-west winds. Like the Jovian winds, the winds are east-west asymmetric and have Karman vortex streets located only at the west-going jets. From numerical calculations we present an empirically derived energy criterion that determines whether QG vortices survive in oscillatory zonal flows with nonzero potential vorticity gradients. We show that a recent proof that claims that all QG vortices decay when embedded in oscillatory zonal flows is too restrictive in its assumptions. We show that the asymmetries in the cloud morphologies and numbers of cyclones and anticyclones can be accounted for by a QG model of the Jovian atmosphere, and we compare the QG model with competing models.     

Radiative transfer due to atmospheric water vapor: Global considerations of the earth's energy balance

A simple analytical formulation is presented for describing radiative transfer due to atmospheric water vapor. The radiative model is then applied to a global energy balance for earth, and the net infrared flux to space is expressed in terms of the mean surface temperature and atmospheric lapse rate. Water vapor and clouds are assumed to be the only sources of infrared opacity. When compared with empirical information, and for a global mean surface temperature of 288 K, the radiative model indicates a cloud top altitude for a single effective cloud of 6·8 km. Alternatively, when applied to a more realistic three-cloud formulation, the model predicts a comparable value of 6·5 km for an average cloud top altitude.With respect to changes in mean surface temperature, again comparing with empirical results, a discussion relating to the model suggests that the cloud top altitude decreases with decreasing surface temperature, which results in the surface temperature being roughly twice as sensitive to changes in factors such as planetary albedo than for the conventional assumption of a fixed cloud top altitude. Implications of this are discussed with respect to possible albedo changes due to atmospheric particulate matter as well as cloudiness as a climate feedback mechanism.     

激光在准球形边界卷云中传输的衰减和透过特性

高空卷云主要由各种不同形状的冰晶粒子组成,是地空链路上激光信号传输的重要影响因素。依据高空卷云中冰晶粒子的分布特征和散射特性,采用C版本的离散纵标法（CDISORT）,充分考虑地球球形曲率及云层冰晶粒子多次散射影响因素,研究准球形边界云层的激光透过率和衰减特性,并比较了太阳天顶角不同时平面平行模式和准球面模式下卷云大气激光透过率的差异,数值计算了三种激光波长（0.65,1.06和3.8 μm）在卷云中传输时的衰减和透过特性。计算结果表明：较小太阳天顶角（小于80°）入射时,两种模式下卷云大气激光透过率相对误差很小,其中0.65 μm激光波长入射时两种模式下的相对误差仅为1.72%,较大太阳天顶角（大于80°）入射时,两种模式下卷云大气激光透过率相对误差明显增大,0.65 μm激光波长入射时两种模式下的相对误差最大达到69%;卷云粒子单次散射时,激光在云层的衰减与卷云粒子有效半径、传输距离、光学厚度及激光波长等因素有关,随光学厚度的增加,云层的激光透过率减少,1.06 μm激光波长入射时透过率最大,3.8 μm激光波长入射时透过率最小;0.65和1.06 μm激光波长入射时,随云层粒子有效半径的增加激光透过率逐渐增加,而3.8 μm波长激光,随云层粒子有效半径的增加激光透过率逐渐减少,随相对方位角的增加,云层的激光透过率减少,且不同卷云传输模型对激光透过率也存在不同的影响。该研究工作将为开展地空链路星载、机载激光通信、激光雷达探测等工程系统中的激光信号云层传输特性的应用提供理论支持,同时也可进一步拓展为地空链路激光遥感、制导和预警等应用提供预先理论研究基础。     

卷云短波红外辐射特性

 采用离散纵标法耦合大气分子吸收,模拟计算了卷云大气的反射特性。研究了在短波波段卷云辐射性质随波长、卷云光学厚度、卷云有效尺度、云高和卷云中冰晶粒子形状等的变化关系,分析了卷云对大气红外背景辐射的影响。结果表明：在2.7 μm的水汽强吸收带上,卷云的出现明显增强了该波段的大气背景辐射,反射率随光学厚度和云高增大而增大。     

大气折射对可见光波段辐射传输特性的影响

折射是影响辐射传输的重要因素. 为分析大气折射对辐射传输的影响, 基于Monte Carlo方法, 给出了考虑大气折射的矢量辐射传输模型, 实现了均匀气层和耦合面处光子随机运动过程的模拟, 实现了直射光及漫射光Stokes矢量、偏振度和辐射通量等参数的计算. 在考虑和不考虑大气折射两种条件下, 验证了模型的准确性; 在纯瑞利散射条件下, 讨论了大气折射对不同方向漫射光Stokes矢量的影响; 在不同太阳天顶角、大气廓线、气溶胶及含云大气条件下, 分析了大气折射对辐射传输过程的影响. 结果表明: 大气折射对漫射光Stokes矢量的影响主要体现在天顶角70°–110°区间, 且随着太阳入射角增大, 其影响更为显著; 不同大气廓线情形下, 大气折射对Stokes矢量的影响不一致, 其原因是不同大气廓线对应的折射率廓线存在差异. 含云及含气溶胶大气条件下, 大气折射对辐射传输的影响变弱, 沙尘型及海盐型气溶胶条件下, 折射对辐射传输的影响强于可溶型气溶胶情形; 不同形状气溶胶条件下, 大气折射对辐射传输的影响也存在显著差异; 不同云高条件下, 大气折射对漫射光Stokes矢量的影响无显著差异, 但随着云光学厚度增大, 大气折射的影响减弱.     

Adaptation of mesoscale turbulence parameterisation schemes as RANS closures for ABL simulations

The present study presents different k-ε turbulence closures for atmospheric boundary layer flows using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations that are consistent with inflow conditions from numerical weather prediction (NWP) simulations. Eight different mesoscale turbulence parameterisation schemes of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model are covered. To ensure consistency between the NWP and CFD simulations, different closure coefficients of the k ? ε turbulence model for each NWP scheme are proposed. This is achieved by combining production–dissipation closure coefficient relationships based on the Monin–Obukhov similarity theory and the formulation based on the Coriolis parameter proposed by Detering and Etling. The proposed methodology has been implemented in the open source CFD toolbox OpenFOAM and is demonstrated at near-neutral stability conditions for the classical Askervein Hill case.     

一种新的大气折射率剖面模型构建方法

针对现有大气折射率剖面模型中干项简化模型较多、使用中难以取舍和湿项简化模型精度较低等问题,利用某台站实测探空数据,对现有几种大气折射率剖面模型的精度进行了分析。在此基础上,基于小波聚类和EOF(经验正交函数)分析方法,构建了一个能够考虑天气特征的大气折射率剖面改进模型,并利用实测数据对其精度进行了验证。结果表明:改进模型拟合精度较现有模型精度有明显改进。其中,干项模型能够充分考虑台站本地气候特征,精度更高;湿项模型将天气类型细分为四类,比现有模型精度最大提高了约6个折射率单位。同时,改进模型天气类型划分方法较容易被非气象专业人员理解,便于此模型推广应用。     

Validation of the community radiative transfer model

To validate the Community Radiative Transfer Model (CRTM) developed by the U.S. Joint Center for Satellite Data Assimilation (JCSDA), the discrete ordinate radiative transfer (DISORT) model and the line-by-line radiative transfer model (LBLRTM) are combined in order to provide a reference benchmark. Compared with the benchmark, the CRTM appears quite accurate for both clear sky and ice cloud radiance simulations with RMS errors below 0.2 K, except for clouds with small ice particles. In a computer CPU run time comparison, the CRTM is faster than DISORT by approximately two orders of magnitude. Using the operational MODIS cloud products and the European Center for Medium-range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) atmospheric profiles as an input, the CRTM is employed to simulate the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) radiances. The CRTM simulations are shown to be in reasonably close agreement with the AIRS measurements (the discrepancies are within 2 K in terms of brightness temperature difference). Furthermore, the impact of uncertainties in the input cloud properties and atmospheric profiles on the CRTM simulations has been assessed. The CRTM-based brightness temperatures (BTs) at the top of the atmosphere (TOA), for both thin (τ<5) and thick (τ>30) clouds, are highly sensitive to uncertainties in atmospheric temperature and cloud top pressure. However, for an optically thick cloud, the CRTM-based BTs are not sensitive to the uncertainties of cloud optical thickness, effective particle size, and atmospheric humidity profiles. On the contrary, the uncertainties of the CRTM-based TOA BTs resulting from effective particle size and optical thickness are not negligible in an optically thin cloud.     

Adaptive numerical algorithms in space weather modeling

Space weather describes the various processes in the Sun–Earth system that present danger to human health and technology. The goal of space weather forecasting is to provide an opportunity to mitigate these negative effects. Physics-based space weather modeling is characterized by disparate temporal and spatial scales as well as by different relevant physics in different domains. A multi-physics system can be modeled by a software framework comprising several components. Each component corresponds to a physics domain, and each component is represented by one or more numerical models. The publicly available Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF) can execute and couple together several components distributed over a parallel machine in a flexible and efficient manner. The framework also allows resolving disparate spatial and temporal scales with independent spatial and temporal discretizations in the various models.Several of the computationally most expensive domains of the framework are modeled by the Block-Adaptive Tree Solarwind Roe-type Upwind Scheme (BATS-R-US) code that can solve various forms of the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations, including Hall, semi-relativistic, multi-species and multi-fluid MHD, anisotropic pressure, radiative transport and heat conduction. Modeling disparate scales within BATS-R-US is achieved by a block-adaptive mesh both in Cartesian and generalized coordinates. Most recently we have created a new core for BATS-R-US: the Block-Adaptive Tree Library (BATL) that provides a general toolkit for creating, load balancing and message passing in a 1, 2 or 3 dimensional block-adaptive grid. We describe the algorithms of BATL and demonstrate its efficiency and scaling properties for various problems.BATS-R-US uses several time-integration schemes to address multiple time-scales: explicit time stepping with fixed or local time steps, partially steady-state evolution, point-implicit, semi-implicit, explicit/implicit, and fully implicit numerical schemes. Depending on the application, we find that different time stepping methods are optimal. Several of the time integration schemes exploit the block-based granularity of the grid structure.The framework and the adaptive algorithms enable physics-based space weather modeling and even short-term forecasting.     

Lidar Multiple Scattering in Water Droplet Clouds: Toward an Improved Treatment

Although it has long been recognized that the effects of photon multiple scattering generally need to be accounted for in the analysis of lidar cloud returns, this is a difficult problem and current approaches are still rudimentary. The multiple scattering process is controlled by the size of the lidar beamwidth and the distance to the cloud, which jointly determine the lidar footprint, but cloud microphysical content (i.e., particle size, concentration, and shape) exerts a strong influence on the range distribution and depolarization of the returned energy. Since clouds are inherently inhomogeneous with height, it is our premise that vertically homogeneous cloud simulations based on idealized particle size distributions lead to misleading results. We offer a more realistic approach based on the contents of growing water droplet clouds predicted by a sophisticated adiabatic cloud model, which are offered for use as new standard vertically-inhomogeneous cloud models. Lidar returned signal and depolarization profiles derived from our analytical double-scattering method are given for inter-comparison purposes.Presented at the 7th International Workshop on Multiple Scattering Lidar/Light Experiments (MUSCLE7), July 21–23 1994, Chiba, Japan.     

Cloud 3D effects on broadband heating rate profiles: I. Model simulation

Solar broadband heating directly drives the atmospheric and ocean circulations, and is largely determined by cloud spatial 3-diminesional (3D) structures. To study the cloud 3D effects on radiation, a 3D broadband Monte-Carlo radiative transfer model, along with an Independent Pixel/Column Approximation (IPA) method, is used to simulate radiation and heating rate of three typical cloud fields generated by cloud resolving models (CRM). A quantitative and statistical estimation of cloud 3D effects has been developed to investigate the impact of cloud 3D structures on both heating rate strength, STD_Bias, and vertical distribution, CorrCoef. The cloud 3D structures affect some clouds more in heating rate strength and others more in vertical distribution. It is crucial to use the combination of CorrCoef and STD_Bias for better quantitative evaluation of the 3D effects. Furthermore, there is no simple way to define a critical resolution (or average radius), within which the IPA heating rate profiles closely represent the true 3D heating rate profiles. The critical radius (or resolution) strongly depends on solar incident angle as well as cloud vertical distribution. Also, the critical radii for clear-sky columns are larger than for cloudy columns, although the corresponding STD_Bias for clear-sky columns are smaller than for cloudy columns. Analysis based on two different statistical average methods illustrates that the cloud 3D effects due to the dimensionality difference between the 3D clouds (circle average) and 2D clouds (line average) significantly impact on the heating rate profiles.     

Review of Geostationary Interferometric Infrared Sounder

To measure the global atmospheric three-dimensional distribution and change of temperature and humidity is one of the key areas in atmospheric remote sensing detection; it is also a new research and development direction in the field of meteorological satellite application. As a main element of China second generation of geostationary meteorological satellite Fengyun 4(FY-4), which was launched on Dec. 11, 2016, the Geostationary Interferometric Infrared Sounder(GIIRS) is the first interferometric infrared sounder working on the international geostationary orbit. It is used for vertical atmospheric sounding and gains atmospheric temperature, humidity, and disturbances. The combination of Fourier transform spectrometer technology and infrared detectors makes GIIRS have high spectral resolution and large coverage over spatial areas. With this kind of instrument, meteorological satellites can improve the capabilities for severe weather event monitoring and numerical weather prediction. Here a concise review of the GIIRS development project, including its history, missions and functions,technical design, key technologies, system integration, calibration and in-orbit operation status, etc., is presented.     

Analogue correction method of errors and its application to numerical weather prediction

In this paper, an analogue correction method of errors (ACE) based on a complicated atmospheric model is further developed and applied to numerical weather prediction (NWP). The analysis shows that the ACE can effectively reduce model errors by combining the statistical analogue method with the dynamical model together in order that the information of plenty of historical data is utilized in the current complicated NWP model. Furthermore, in the ACE, the differences of the similarities between different historical analogues and the current initial state are considered as the weights for estimating model errors. The results of daily, decad and monthly prediction experiments on a complicated T63 atmospheric model show that the performance of the ACE by correcting model errors based on the estimation of the errors of 4 historical analogue predictions is not only better than that of the scheme of only introducing the correction of the errors of every single analogue prediction, but is also better than that of the T63 model.     

复杂大气背景下机载通信终端与无人机目标之间的激光传输特性研究

云层、气溶胶和大气分子是大气环境的主要组成部分.本文基于逐次散射法求解辐射传输方程,建立了复杂大气背景下机载无线光通信终端与地空无人机目标之间的激光传输模型.考虑真实大气背景中卷云、大气分子和气溶胶存在的情况下,数值计算了1.55 mm激光经机载通信终端发出后通过大气背景的直接传输和一阶散射传输后接收功率随无人机目标高度的变化关系,分析了飞机在云上、云中和云下以及卷云冰晶粒子有效半径、飞机与无人机之间的水平距离对接收激光信号传输功率的影响.数值结果表明:激光通过卷云传输的功率很大程度上取决于飞机在云上、云下或云中的位置;飞机与无人机目标之间的水平距离和卷云冰晶粒子的有效半径对激光直接传输和一阶散射传输影响较大;与云上大气相比,云下的大气分子和气溶胶对激光有较大的衰减.本文工作可为进一步开展地空链路上复杂大气背景对机载与低空无人机目标激光通信实验、无人机编队、指挥和组网技术的研究提供理论支撑.     

Impact of ice particle shape on short-wave radiative forcing: A case study for an arctic ice cloud

We used four different non-spherical particle models to compute optical properties of an arctic ice cloud and to simulate corresponding cloud radiative forcings and fluxes. One important finding is that differences in cloud forcing, downward flux at the surface, and absorbed flux in the atmosphere resulting from the use of the four different ice cloud particle models are comparable to differences in these quantities resulting from changing the surface albedo from 0.4 to 0.8, or by varying the ice water content (IWC) by a factor of 2. These findings show that the use of a suitable non-spherical ice cloud particle model is very important for a realistic assessment of the radiative impact of arctic ice clouds. The differences in radiative broadband fluxes predicted by the four different particle models were found to be caused mainly by differences in the optical depth and the asymmetry parameter. These two parameters were found to have nearly the same impact on the predicted cloud forcing. Computations were performed first by assuming a given vertical profile of the particle number density, then by assuming a given profile of the IWC. In both cases, the differences between the cloud radiative forcings computed with the four different non-spherical particle models were found to be of comparable magnitude. This finding shows that precise knowledge of ice particle number density or particle mass is not sufficient for accurate prediction of ice cloud radiative forcing. It is equally important to employ a non-spherical shape model that accurately reproduces the ice particle's dimension-to-volume ratio and its asymmetry parameter. The hexagonal column/plate model with air-bubble inclusions seems to offer the highest degree of flexibility.     

云和降水扰动对黄土高原半干旱草地辐射收支及能量分配的影响

地表辐射收支和能量分配对陆-气系统的反馈是气候模式中最重要的物理过程之一. 认识半干旱地区云和降水的扰动对辐射收支和能量分配的影响规律, 是提高数值模式中评估地表辐射收支和能量平衡参数化效果的关键环节. 利用兰州大学半干旱气候与环境观测站2008年的观测资料, 研究了云和降水的扰动对辐射收支各分量的削弱作用及对地表能量平衡的影响规律. 年平均结果表明, 多云状况可以作为年平均的气候背景; 云和降水对短波辐射削弱最强, 大气向下长波辐射随天空云量的增加而增强, 地表向上长波辐射随着云量的增加而减小, 净辐射占总辐射的比率受云和降水的影响较小. 季节平均结果显示, 短波辐射日积分量在生长季和非生长季均随云量的增加而降低, 生长季云和降水对短波辐射的削弱作用明显强于非生长季. 生长季, 晴天、少云和多云时向上长波辐射差异不大, 阴天时向下和向上长波辐射明显减小. 非生长季, 地表向上长波辐射受云和降水的影响较小, 日积分量变化不大, 向下长波辐射随云量的增多而增强. 地表反照率具有明显的日变化和季节变化, 冬季大, 秋季小; 地表反照率日变化呈不对称的“V”形分布. 生长季, 感热通量和土壤热通量随云量增多而减小; 潜热通量在晴天、少云和多云状况下随云量增多而增大; 阴天时受降水影响, 净辐射的严重削弱导致了潜热通量大大降低. 非生长季, 少云时净辐射日积分量最大, 晴天时的净辐射与多云和阴天状况接近; 感热和潜热通量随云量的增多而减小, 土壤热通量日平均积分值在非生长季为负. 生长季, 多云状况的能量闭合度最好, 能量不平衡差额占净辐射的3.9%; 阴天时最差, 不平衡差额占净辐射的16.8%; 晴天和少云状况不平衡差额约占净辐射量的7%. 非生长季受积雪影响, 能量不闭合差额明显大于生长季. 关键词： 半干旱草地 云和降水的扰动 辐射收支 能量平衡     

Dynamos at extreme magnetic Prandtl numbers: insights from shell models

We present a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) shell model suitable for computation of various energy fluxes of MHD turbulence for very small and very large magnetic Prandtl numbers Pm; such computations are inaccessible to direct numerical simulations. For small Pm, we observe that both kinetic and magnetic energy spectra scale as k^?5/3 in the inertial range, but the dissipative magnetic energy scales as k^?11/3exp?(? k/k_η). Here the kinetic energy at large length scale feeds the large-scale magnetic field that cascades to small-scale magnetic field, which gets dissipated by Joule heating. The large-Pm dynamo has a similar behaviour except that the dissipative kinetic energy scales as k^?13/3. For this case, the large-scale velocity field transfers energy to the large-scale magnetic field, which gets transferred to small-scale velocity and magnetic fields; the energy of the small-scale magnetic field also gets transferred to the small-scale velocity field, and the energy thus accumulated is dissipated by the viscous force.