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GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 32, L02809, doi:10.1029/2004GL021024, 2005

A new approach for 3D cloud-resolving simulations of large-scale atmospheric circulation

Zhiming Kuang

Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA


Peter N. Blossey

Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA


Christopher S. Bretherton

Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA


Abstract

We present a computationally efficient new method for simulating the interactions of large-scale atmospheric circulations with deep convection in a 3D cloud-resolving model. This is accomplished by reducing the scale difference between the large-scale and convective circulations. Our method, Diabatic Acceleration and REscaling (DARE), consists of accelerating all diabatic processes, reducing the planetary radius and increasing its rotation rate. A second useful interpretation of this rescaling, Reduced Acceleration in the VErtical (RAVE) is also presented briefly. The DARE/RAVE approach is expected to be useful for a wide range of problems involving interactions between large-scale circulation, deep convection, and associated cloud and radiation processes, whose investigation has long been plagued by deficiencies in cumulus/cloud parameterizations. Initial results from a near-global scale equatorial β-plane simulation using the DARE approach are briefly presented.

Received 15 July 2004; accepted 16 December 2004; published 27 January 2005.

Index Terms: 3314 Atmospheric Processes: Convective processes; 3389 Atmospheric Processes: Tides and planetary waves; 3337 Atmospheric Processes: Global climate models (1626, 4928); 3339 Atmospheric Processes: Ocean/atmosphere interactions (0312, 4504); 3374 Atmospheric Processes: Tropical meteorology.

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Citation: Kuang, Z., P. N. Blossey, and C. S. Bretherton (2005), A new approach for 3D cloud-resolving simulations of large-scale atmospheric circulation, Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L02809, doi:10.1029/2004GL021024.