Unified Aerosol Microphysics for NWP
Abstract
The long-term goal of this research is to develop a practical predictive capability for visibility and weather effects of aerosol particles over any region of the world for timely use in planning and executing DOD operations and activities. Specifically, the goal is to develop a COAMPS that is capable of simulating the full range of interactions between aerosol particles, clouds, and radiative transfer while remaining flexible, extensible and operationally practical. The fundamental predicted variables are the concentrations of those aerosol species that are responsible for degradation of Electro- Optical (EO) propagation or that modify cloud behavior and lifetime. The primary objective for this project is to design and implement a flexible and extensible mechanism into COAMPS that allows new scalar variables to be added and accessed with less effort, thus enabling new development of more complex cloud-aerosol interactions. The work on this project has been divided into two phases, an investigation phase followed by an implementation phase. Because upgrading scalar variable handling is a major change to a model s infrastructure, we decided to focus significant effort in the investigation phase to refine the requirements and evaluate a number of software designs. Another objective is the development of an aerosol microphysics library and emission inventories for use by COAMPS and other models. The final objective is a version of COAMPS configured to forecast the major aerosol species, yet suitable for operational use. The proposed capabilities will provide numerous opportunities to study and solve problems of interest to the Navy and DOD, as well as the climate community.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA574578
Entities
People
- Douglas L. Westphal
- James D. Doyle
- Jeffrey S. Reid
- Jerome Schmidt
- Stephen A. Lowder
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory