Numerical Modeling and Parameterization of Gravity Wave Processes and Effects in the Atmosphere
Abstract
A nonlinear, compressible, spectral collocation code has been developed to examine gravity wave breaking and instability processes in two and three spatial dimensions. Initial studies have demonstrated that the preferred mode of instability within a high-frequency gravity wave is a convective instability comprised of counter-rotating vortices aligned transverse to the direction of wave propagation (a horizontal wave number normal to that of the gravity wave). Thus, wave instability is inherently three-dimensional, and two- dimensional models are unlikely to adequately describe either the physics of wave breaking or the implications for wave transports and eddy mixing. A parallel effort has emphasized the statistical effects of wave interactions and dissipation processes and developed a new spectral parameterization of gravity wave transports of energy and momentum and their atmospheric effects. This scheme relies on the approximately universal spectral shape of the gravity wave motion field throughout the atmosphere to assess the potential for wave transports and variations with background wind and stability profiles.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 31, 1992
- Accession Number
- ADA264331
Entities
People
- David C Fritts
Organizations
- University of Colorado Boulder