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JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 112, D13110, doi:10.1029/2006JD008274, 2007

Impact of turbulence, land surface, and radiation parameterizations on simulated boundary layer properties in a coastal environment

Shiyuan Zhong

Department of Geography, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA


Heejin In

Department of Geosciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA


Craig Clements

Department of Geosciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA


Abstract

The impact of planetary boundary layer (PBL) turbulence, land surface, and radiation parameterizations on mesoscale simulations of boundary layer properties in a coastal environment are examined using observations from different platforms and numerical simulations using the mesoscale model MM5 during a 10-day period in July 2004. The parameterization schemes examined are the MRF and Eta PBL schemes, the simple soil model and the more sophisticated NOAH land surface model, and the Dudhia and RRTM longwave radiation parameterizations. Comparisons are made between simulated and observed near surface mean variables, radiation, turbulence fluxes, mixed layer heights and morning inversion strengths, low-level jets, and land-sea breeze circulations. The comparisons indicate that for the Gulf Coast environment and typical summertime conditions, the Eta PBL scheme clearly outperforms the MRF PBL scheme in nearly all aspects. The results reveal that the popular Dudhia radiation scheme tends to overpredict the downward longwave radiation, which consequently results in a warm bias at night and a weaker nocturnal low level jet. Although the NOAH land surface model is much more sophisticated than the simple soil model, it failed to deliver significantly improved simulations of boundary layer properties for the conditions considered in this study.

Received 22 November 2006; accepted 30 April 2007; published 7 July 2007.

Keywords: coastal boundary layer; mesoscale modeling; model parameterization.

Index Terms: 3307 Atmospheric Processes: Boundary layer processes; 3379 Atmospheric Processes: Turbulence (4490); 3329 Atmospheric Processes: Mesoscale meteorology; 3355 Atmospheric Processes: Regional modeling.

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Citation: Zhong, S., H. In, and C. Clements (2007), Impact of turbulence, land surface, and radiation parameterizations on simulated boundary layer properties in a coastal environment, J. Geophys. Res., 112, D13110, doi:10.1029/2006JD008274.