Rainfall and surface kinematic conditions over central Amazonia during ABLE 2B

Journal Article · Thu Sep 20 00:00:00 EDT 1990 · Journal of Geophysical Research; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/JD095iD10p17001· OSTI ID:6062381

Greco, S; Swap, R; Garstang, M; Ulanski, S; Shipham, M ^[1]; Harriss, R C; Talbot, R ^[2]; Andreae, M O ^[3]; Artaxo, P ^[4]

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1. Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville (USA)
2. Univ. of New Hampshire, Durham (USA)
3. Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz (West Germany)
4. Universidade de Sao Paulo (Brazil)

Meteorological and chemical data collected during the wet season Amazon Boundary Layer Experiment near Manaus, Brazil, are used to investigate the rainfall, rainfall systems,and surface kinematics of the central Amazon basin wet season. Analysis of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-West) imagery indicates that, based on location of initial development, there are three main types of convective systems which influence a mesoscale network near Manaus. Coastal Occurring Systems (COS) are mesoscale to synoptic scale sized systems of generally linear orientation which form along the northern coast of Brazil and propagate across the Amazon basin. The Basin Occurring Systems (BOS) form in the basin east and north of Manaus and also propagate toward the network. Locally Occurring Systems (LOS) form in and around the mesoscale network and rarely are larger than 1,000 km{sup 2}. Composites of hourly rainfall totals and satellite-derived cloud cover show that rainfall and cloudiness associated with COS occurred in the network between 1,400 and 1,800 UT, while BOS rainfall was most common between 1,000 and 1,400 UT. Little rain or cloud cover was seen before 1,600 UT during days influenced by LOS. Chemical analysis of the rainwater delivered by these systems also shows significant differences in the concentrations of formate, acetate, pyruvate, sulfate, and hydrogen ion. In addition, aerosol concentrations measured near Manaus indicate large influxes of aerosols (sodium, chlorine, and silicon) into central Amazonia after the passage of BOS and COS. During April 11-20, BOS occurred on 8 days and produced 98% of the rainfall. Eight COS occurred during April 21 to May 3 and accounted for 89% of the rainfall. The final part of the experiment, May 4-14, was influenced solely by LOS.

• OSTI ID: 6062381
• Journal Information: Journal of Geophysical Research; (USA), Vol. 95:D10; ISSN 0148-0227
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
BRAZIL
METEOROLOGY
ACETATES
AEROSOLS
AMAZON RIVER
ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY
ATMOSPHERIC CIRCULATION
BOUNDARY LAYERS
CARBOXYLIC ACID SALTS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CHLORINE
CLOUD COVER
COASTAL REGIONS
CONVECTION
DATA ANALYSIS
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
FORESTS
FORMATES
HYDROGEN
LAND RESOURCES
PYRUVIC ACID
RAIN
REMOTE SENSING
SATELLITES
SEASONAL VARIATIONS
SILICON
SODIUM
SULFATES
ALKALI METALS
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
CHEMISTRY
COLLOIDS
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY TRANSFER
HALOGENS
HEAT TRANSFER
KETO ACIDS
LATIN AMERICA
LAYERS
MASS TRANSFER
METALS
NONMETALS
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RIVERS
SEMIMETALS
SOLS
SOUTH AMERICA
STREAMS
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SURFACE WATERS
VARIATIONS
540110*