Numerical simulations of the impacts of the Saharan air layer on Atlantic tropical cyclone development

Journal of Climate

Volumn 22, Issue 23, 2009, Pages 6230-6250

  Sun, Donglian ^a   Lau, W K M ^b   Kafatos, Menas ^c   Boybeyi, Zafer ^a   Leptoukh, Gregory ^b   Yang, Chaiwei ^a   Yang, Ruixin ^a  

^a GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER   (United States)

^c CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ATLANTIC BASIN; ATMOSPHERIC INFRARED SOUNDERS; DRY AIR; DUST AEROSOLS; ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY; EVAPORATIVE COOLING; HUMIDITY PROFILE; HURRICANE ACTIVITY; INDIRECT EFFECTS; MESOSCALE; MULTI-DISCIPLINARY ANALYSIS; MULTISENSOR SATELLITES; NUMERICAL SIMULATION; SAHARAN AIR LAYERS; SPIN-DOWN; TEMPERATURE INFORMATION; TEMPERATURE INVERSIONS; TERM RELATIONSHIP; THERMAL STRUCTURE; TROPICAL CYCLONE; TROPICAL DISTURBANCES; UPPER TROPOSPHERE; VERTICAL TEMPERATURE; VERTICAL WIND SHEAR; VORTICAL CIRCULATIONS; WARM AIR; WARM TEMPERATURES; WEATHER RESEARCH AND FORECASTING MODELS; WESTERN ATLANTIC;

AEROSOLS; ATMOSPHERIC HUMIDITY; ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE; CLIMATOLOGY; COMPUTER SIMULATION; CONVERGENCE OF NUMERICAL METHODS; CURING; DUST; EVAPORATIVE COOLING SYSTEMS; EXPERIMENTS; HURRICANES; INFRARED DEVICES; INFRARED INSTRUMENTS; MATHEMATICAL MODELS; MOISTURE; NASA; SOUNDING APPARATUS; STORMS; THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY; TROPICS; WEATHER FORECASTING;

AIR ENTRAINMENT;

AEROSOL; ATMOSPHERIC CONVECTION; COMPUTER SIMULATION; DUST; MESOSCALE METEOROLOGY; SATELLITE DATA; TEMPERATURE INVERSION; TEMPERATURE PROFILE; THERMAL STRUCTURE; TROPICAL CYCLONE; TROPOSPHERE; WEATHER FORECASTING; WIND SHEAR;

ATLANTIC ISLANDS; ATLANTIC OCEAN; SAHARA;

EID: 77649287797     PISSN: 08948755     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1175/2009JCLI2738.1     Document Type: Article

References (54)

1. Acker, J., and G. Leptoukh, 2007: Online analysis enhances use of NASA earth science data. Eos, Trans. Amer. Geophys. Union, 88, 14, doi:10.1029/2007EO020003.
2. Arimoto, R., 2001: Eolian dust and climate: Relationships to sources, tropospheric chemistry, transport and deposition. Earth Sci. Rev., 54, 29-42.
3. Barker, D. M., W. Huang, Y.-R. Guo, A. J. Bourgeois, and Q. N. Xiao, 2004: A three-dimensional variational data assimilation system for MM5: Implementation and initial results. Mon. Wea. Rev., 132, 897-914.
4. Beven, J., 2006: Tropical Cyclone Report Hurricane Florence (AL062006) 3-12 September 2006. National Hurricane Center Document TCR-AL062006, 12 pp. [Available online at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TCR-AL062006_Florence.pdf.]
5. Brown, J. M., 1979: Mesoscale unsaturated downdraft driven by rainfall evaporation: A numerical study. J. Atmos. Sci., 36, 313-338.
6. Carlson, T. N., and J. M. Prospero, 1972: The large-scale movement of Saharan air outbreaks over the northern equatorial Atlantic. J. Appl. Meteor., 11, 283-297.
7. Carlson, T. N., and S. G. Benjamin, 1980: Radiative heating rates for Saharan dust. J. Atmos. Sci., 37, 193-213.
8. Chen, Y.-L., 1985: Tropical squall lines over the eastern Atlantic during GATE. Mon. Wea. Rev., 113, 2015-2022.
9. Chiapello, I., J. M. Prospero, J. R. Herman, and N. C. Hsu, 1999: Detection of mineral dust over the North Atlantic Ocean and Africa with the Nimbus 7 TOMS. J. Geophys. Res., 104, 9277- 9291.
10. Chiapello, I., C. Moulin, and J. M. Prospero, 2005: Understanding the longterm variability of African dust transport across the Atlantic as recorded in both Barbados surface concentrations and large-scale Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) optical thickness. J. Geophys. Res., 110, D18S10, doi:10.1029/2004JD005132.
11. Chou, M.-D., and M. J. Suarez, 1994: An efficient thermal infrared radiation parameterization for use in general circulation models. NASA Tech. Memo. 104606, Vol. 3, 85 pp.
12. Christopher, S. A., and T. Jones, 2007: Satellite-based assessment of cloud-free net radiative effect of dust aerosols over the Atlantic Ocean. Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L02810, doi:10.1029/2006GL027783.
13. d'Almeida, G. A., 1987: On the variability of desert aerosol radiative characteristics. J. Geophys. Res., 92, 3017-3026.
14. Dudhia, J., 2004: The weather research and forecast model version 2.0: Physics update. MM5/WRF User's Workshop, Boulder, CO, NCAR, 4 pp.
15. Dunion, J. P., and C. S. Velden, 2004: The impact of the Saharan air layer on Atlantic tropical cyclone activity. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 85, 353-365.
16. Dunion, J. P., and C. S. Marron, 2008: A reexamination of the Jordan mean tropical sounding based on awareness of the Saharan air layer: Results from 2002. J. Climate, 21, 5242-5253.
17. Emanuel, K., C. DesAutels, C. Holloway, and R. Korty, 2004: Environmental control of tropical cyclone intensity. J. Atmos. Sci., 61, 843-858.
18. Evan, A. T., J. Dunion, J. A. Foley, A. K. Heidinger, and C. S. Velden, 2006: New evidence for a relationship between Atlantic tropical cyclone activity and African dust outbreaks. Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L19813, doi:10.1029/2006GL026408.
19. Goldenberg, S. B., and L. J. Shapiro, 1996: Physical mechanisms for the association of El Niño and West African rainfall with Atlantic major hurricane activity. J. Climate, 9, 1169-1187.
20. Goudie, A. S., and N. J. Middleton, 2002: Saharan dust storms: Nature and consequences. Earth Sci. Rev., 56, 179-204.
21. Hong, S.-Y., and H.-L. Pan, 1996: Nonlocal boundary layer vertical diffusion in a medium-range forecast model. Mon. Wea. Rev., 124, 2322-2339.
22. Hoyos, C. D., P. A. Agudelo, P. J. Webster, and J. A. Curry, 2006: Deconvolution of the factors contributing to the increase in global hurricane intensity. Science, 312, 94-97.
23. Kafatos, M., D. Sun, R. Gautam, Z. Boybeyi, R. Yang, and G. Cervone, 2006: The role of warm Gulf waters in the intensification of Hurricane Katrina. Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L17802, doi:10.1029/2006GL026623.
24. Kain, J. S., and J. M. Fritsch, 1990: A one-dimensional entraining/ detraining plume model and its application in convective parameterization. J. Atmos. Sci., 47, 2784-2802.
25. Kain, J. S., and Kain, J. S., 1993: Convective parameterization for mesoscale models: The Kain-Fritcsh scheme. The Representation of Cumulus Convection in Numerical Models, Meteor. Monogr., No. 46, Amer. Meteor. Soc., 165-170.
26. Kamineni, R., T. N. Krishnamurti, S. Pattnaik, E. V. Browell, S. Ismail, and R. A. Ferrare, 2006: Impact of CAMEX-4 data sets for hurricane forecasts using a global model. J. Atmos. Sci., 63, 151-174.
27. Karyampudi, V. M., and T. N. Carlson, 1988: Analysis and numerical simulations of the Saharan air layer and its effect on easterly wave disturbances. J. Atmos. Sci., 45, 3102-3136.
28. Kaufman, Y. J., D. Tanré, and O. Boucher, 2002: A satellite view of aerosols in the climate system. Nature, 419, 215-223.
29. Kaufman, Y., I. Koren, L. A. Remer, D. Tanré,P.Ginoux,andS.Fan, 2005: Dust transport and deposition observed from the Terra-Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) spacecraft over the Atlantic Ocean. J. Geophys. Res., 110, D10S12, doi:10.1029/2003JD004436.
30. Lau, W. K. M., and K.-M. Kim, 2006: How nature foiled the 2006 hurricane forecasts. Eos, Trans. Amer. Geophys. Union, 88, 105-107.
31. Leary, C. A., and R. A. Houze Jr., 1979: Melting and evaporation of hydrometeors in precipitation from anvil clouds of deep tropical convection. J. Atmos. Sci., 36, 669-679.
32. Li, F., A. M. Vogelmann, and V. Ramanathan, 2004: Saharan dust aerosol radiative forcing measured from space. J. Climate, 17, 2558-2571.
33. Li, X., H. Maring, D. Savoie, K. Voss, and J. M. Prospero, 1996: Dominance of mineral dust in aerosol light-scattering in the North Atlantic trade winds. Nature, 380, 416-419.
34. Lin, Y.-L., R. D. Farley, and H. D. Orville, 1983: Bulk parameterization of the snow field in a cloud model. J. Climate Appl. Meteor., 22, 1065-1092.
35. Mapes, B. E., and P. Zuidema, 1996: Radiative and dynamical consequences of dry tongues in the tropical troposphere. J. Atmos. Sci., 53, 620-638.
36. Miller, R. L., and I. Tegen, 1999: Radiative forcing of a tropical direct circulation by soil dust aerosols. J. Atmos. Sci., 56, 2403-2433.
37. Mlawer, E. J., S. J. Taubman, P. D. Brown, M. J. Iacono, and S. A. Clough, 1997: Radiative transfer for inhomogeneous atmospheres: RRTM, a validated correlated-k model for the longwave. J. Geophys. Res., 102 (D14), 16 663-16 682.
38. Prospero, J. M., and T. N. Carlson, 1972: Vertical and areal distribution of Saharan dust over the western equatorial North Atlantic Ocean. J. Geophys. Res., 77, 5255-5265.
39. Prospero, J., and Prospero, J., 1981: Saharan air outbreaks over the tropical North Atlantic. Pure Appl. Geophys., 119, 677-691.
40. Prospero, J., and P. J. Lamb, 2003: African droughts and dust transport to the Caribbean: Climate change implications. Science, 302, 1024-1027, doi:10.1126/science.1089915.
41. Ramanathan, V., P. J. Crutzen, J. T. Kiehl, and D. Rosenfeld, 2001: Aerosols, climate, and the hydrological cycle. Science, 294, 2119-2124.
42. Skamarock, W. C., J. B. Klemp, J. Dudhia, D. O. Gill, D. M. Barker, W. Wang, and J. G. Powers, 2005: A description of the Advanced Research WRF version 2. NCAR Tech. Note NCAR/TN-4681STR, 88 pp.
43. Sun, D. L., K. M. Lau, and M. Kafatos, 2008: Contrasting the 2007 and 2005 hurricane seasons: Evidence of possible impacts of Saharan dry air and dust on tropical cyclone activity in the Atlantic basin. Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L15405, doi:10.1029/2008GL034529.
44. Tompkins, A. M., 2001: Organization of tropical convection in low vertical wind shears: The role of water vapor. J. Atmos. Sci., 58, 529-545.
45. Wang, C. Z., and S. K. Lee, 2007: Atlantic warm pool, Caribbean low-level jet, and their potential impact on Atlantic hurricanes. Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L02703, doi:10.1029/2006GL028579.
46. Wang, C. Z, D. B. Enfield, S. K. Lee, and C. W. Landsea, 2006: Influences of the Atlantic warm pool on western hemisphere summer rainfall and Atlantic hurricanes. J. Climate, 19, 3011-3028.
47. Weaver, C. J., P. Ginoux, N. C. Hsu, M.-D. Chou, and J. Joiner, 2002: Radiative forcing of Saharan dust: GOCART model simulations compared with ERBE data. J. Atmos. Sci., 59, 736-747.
48. Wong, S., and A. E. Dessler, 2005: Suppression of deep convection over the tropical North Atlantic by the Saharan Air Layer. Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L09808, doi:10.1029/2004GL022295.
49. Wu, L., 2007: Impact of Saharan air layer on hurricane peak intensity. Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L09802, doi:10.1029/2007GL029564.
50. Wu, L., S. A. Braun, J. J. Qu, and X. Hao, 2006: Simulating the formation of Hurricane Isabel (2003) with AIRS data. Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L04804, doi:10.1029/2005GL024665.
51. Yoneyma, K., and D. B. Parsons, 1999: A proposed mechanism for the intrusion of dry air into the tropical western Pacific region. J. Atmos. Sci., 56, 1524-1546.
52. Zhang, C., and M.-D. Chou, 1999: Variability of water vapor, infrared radiative cooling, and atmospheric instability for deep convection in the equatorial western Pacific. J. Atmos. Sci., 56, 711-723.
53. Zhang, C., and J. Pennington, 2004: African dry air outbreaks. J. Geophys. Res., 109, D20108, doi:10.1029/2003JD003978.
54. Zhu, T., and D.-L. Zhang, 2006: Numerical simulation of Hurricane Bonnie (1998). Part II: Sensitivity to cloud microphysical processes. J. Atmos. Sci., 63, 109-126.