Dynamic Adjustment of Mesoscale Convective Lower-Stratospheric Outflows.
Abstract
Recent observational studies of upper-tropospheric and lower-stratospheric winds atop mesoscale convective systems show the development of anticyclonic outflow. We propose that the anticyclone formation can be partially explained by the gradient adjustment that follows the nearly instantaneous vertical redistribution of mass by the convection. With the convection idealized by an impulsive, diabatic mass transfer from the lower troposphere to a layer near the tropopause. The adjustment process is examined using an invertibility principle developed from the quasi-static primitive equations for axisymmetric, inviscid, adiabatic flow on an f-plane in potential radius and entropy coordinates. The invertibility principle is solved as a single, nonlinear, elliptic problem. Solutions show the development of an anticyclone aloft with cold and warm temperature anomalies above and below, respectively. Sensitivity studies indicate that the anticyclone strength is greatest for lower-stratospheric injections at high latitudes including the effects of cloud-top cooling. As the magnitude of the anticyclone increases, the inertial stability of the system is reduced, resulting in a decreased partitioning of the initial available potential energy to the balanced state of the system.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 10, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA300033
Entities
People
- Scott A. Hausman
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology