AGU: Geophysical Research Letters

 

Editors' Highlight

Soil moisture induces atmospheric circulation: Observations from Africa's Sahel

Theoretical studies and models have shown that contrasts in land-surface properties can induce circulations in the atmosphere. Taylor et al. (2007) sought to observe this through monitoring Africa's Sahel region, an area where intense precipitation generates a varied spatial and temporal distribution of soil moisture. Using aircraft and satellite data, the authors found that the air just above wet soil was moister and up to 3°C cooler than nearby dry areas. In addition, winds near the ground were found to vary significantly over patches of wet soil as small as 10 km across, consistent with the theory that soil moisture can drive atmospheric circulations. The authors expect that analysis of additional cloud data will reveal the role of these circulations in the generation of new storms, aiding forecasting in this notoriously unpredictable region and helping to refine models of tropical climate.

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