skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Structure and Evolution of Mesoscale Convective Systems: Sensitivity to Cloud Microphysics in Convection‐Permitting Simulations Over the United States

Journal Article · · Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2018MS001305· OSTI ID:1459037
ORCiD logo [1];  [1]; ORCiD logo [2]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [3]; ORCiD logo [1]
  1. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland WA USA
  2. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland WA USA, Department of Atmospheric Sciences University of Washington Seattle WA USA
  3. School of Atmospheric Sciences Nanjing University Nanjing China
+ Show Author Affiliations

Abstract Regional climate simulations over the continental United States were conducted for the 2011 warm season using the Weather Research and Forecasting model at convection‐permitting resolution (4 km) with two commonly used microphysics parameterizations (Thompson and Morrison). Sensitivities of the simulated mesoscale convective system (MCS) properties and feedbacks to large‐scale environments are systematically examined against high‐resolution geostationary satellite and 3‐D mosaic radar observations. MCS precipitation including precipitation amount, diurnal cycle, and distribution of hourly precipitation intensity are reasonably captured by the two simulations despite significant differences in their simulated MCS properties. In general, the Thompson simulation produces better agreement with observations for MCS upper level cloud shield and precipitation area, convective feature horizontal and vertical extents, and partitioning between convective and stratiform precipitation. More importantly, Thompson simulates more stratiform rainfall, which agrees better with observations and results in top‐heavier heating profiles from robust MCSs compared to Morrison. A stronger dynamical feedback to the large‐scale environment is therefore seen in Thompson, wherein an enhanced mesoscale vortex behind the MCS strengthens the synoptic‐scale trough and promotes advection of cool and dry air into the rear of the MCS region. The latter prolongs the MCS lifetimes in the Thompson relative to the Morrison simulations. Hence, different treatment of cloud microphysics not only alters MCS convective‐scale dynamics but also has significant impacts on their macrophysical properties such as lifetime and precipitation. As long‐lived MCSs produced 2–3 times the amount of rainfall compared to short‐lived ones, cloud microphysics parameterizations have profound impact in simulating extreme precipitation and the hydrologic cycle.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830; 243766
OSTI ID:
1459037
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1459039; OSTI ID: 1464495
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-133754
Journal Information:
Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems, Journal Name: Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems Vol. 10 Journal Issue: 7; ISSN 1942-2466
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 124 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (66)

Life cycle of midlatitude deep convective systems in a Lagrangian framework: MIDLATITUDE CONVECTIVE SYSTEM LIFE CYCLE journal December 2012
A New Vertical Diffusion Package with an Explicit Treatment of Entrainment Processes journal September 2006
Mesoscale Organization of Springtime Rainstorms in Oklahoma journal March 1990
National Mosaic and Multi-Sensor QPE (NMQ) System: Description, Results, and Future Plans journal October 2011
A Regional Modeling Study of Climate Change Impacts on Warm-Season Precipitation in the Central United States journal April 2011
A Real–Time Global Half–Hourly Pixel–Resolution Infrared Dataset and Its Applications journal February 2001
Where are the most Intense Thunderstorms on Earth? journal August 2006
North American Regional Reanalysis journal March 2006
Effects of aerosols on the dynamics and microphysics of squall lines simulated by spectral bin and bulk parameterization schemes journal January 2009
Diagnosis of the summertime warm and dry bias over the U.S. Southern Great Plains in the GFDL climate model using a weather forecasting approach: GFDL CLIMATE MODEL SUMMERTIME BIAS journal September 2006
A New Double-Moment Microphysics Parameterization for Application in Cloud and Climate Models. Part I: Description journal June 2005
Comparison of Simulated and Observed Continental Tropical Anvil Clouds and Their Radiative Heating Profiles journal September 2012
Interpretation of Doppler Weather Radar Displays of Midlatitude Mesoscale Convective Systems journal June 1989
Warm Core Vortex Amplification over Land journal July 1994
Explicit Forecasts of Winter Precipitation Using an Improved Bulk Microphysics Scheme. Part I: Description and Sensitivity Analysis journal February 2004
Characteristics of U.S. Extreme Rain Events during 1999–2003 journal February 2006
Impact of an improved longwave radiation model, RRTM, on the energy budget and thermodynamic properties of the NCAR community climate model, CCM3 journal June 2000
The Contribution of Mesoscale Convective Weather Systems to the Warm-Season Precipitation in the United States journal October 1986
The parametrization of surface fluxes in large-scale models under free convection journal January 1995
Explicit Forecasts of Winter Precipitation Using an Improved Bulk Microphysics Scheme. Part II: Implementation of a New Snow Parameterization journal December 2008
Sensitivity of U.S. summer precipitation to model resolution and convective parameterizations across gray zone resolutions: Sensitivity Across Gray Zone Resolutions journal March 2017
Mesoscale convective systems journal January 2004
Inferences of Predictability Associated with Warm Season Precipitation Episodes journal July 2002
The Role of Cloud Microphysics Parameterization in the Simulation of Mesoscale Convective System Clouds and Precipitation in the Tropical Western Pacific journal April 2013
Precipitation characteristics of CAM5 physics at mesoscale resolution during MC3E and the impact of convective timescale choice journal December 2014
Rear Inflow in Squall Lines with Trailing Stratiform Precipitation journal December 1987
The Distribution of Convective and Mesoscale Precipitation in GATE Radar Echo Patterns journal October 1979
Simulating North American mesoscale convective systems with a convection-permitting climate model journal October 2017
Realism of Rainfall in a Very High-Resolution Regional Climate Model journal September 2012
Evaluating Mesoscale NWP Models Using Kinetic Energy Spectra journal December 2004
Diagnosis of Cloud Mass and Heat Fluxes from Radar and Synoptic Data journal April 1980
Climatological Characterization of Three-Dimensional Storm Structure from Operational Radar and Rain Gauge Data journal September 1995
Microphysical effects determine macrophysical response for aerosol impacts on deep convective clouds journal November 2013
Large-Scale Meteorological Conditions Associated with Midlatitude, Mesoscale Convective Complexes journal July 1983
The variable nature of convection in the tropics and subtropics: A legacy of 16 years of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite: CONVECTIVE VARIABILITY SEEN BY TRMM journal September 2015
Impacts of aerosols on the development and precipitation of a mesoscale squall line journal January 2009
Mesoscale Modeling of Springtime Arctic Mixed-Phase Stratiform Clouds Using a New Two-Moment Bulk Microphysics Scheme journal October 2005
A 10-Year Survey of Extreme Rainfall Events in the Central and Eastern United States Using Gridded Multisensor Precipitation Analyses journal September 2014
A Climatology of Derecho-Producing Mesoscale Convective Systemsin the Central and Eastern United States, 1986–95. Part I: Temporal and Spatial Distribution journal November 1998
Predicting the Movement of Mesoscale Convective Complexes journal March 1996
The Tropical Dynamical Response to Latent Heating Estimates Derived from the TRMM Precipitation Radar journal June 2004
More frequent intense and long-lived storms dominate the springtime trend in central US rainfall journal November 2016
Causes of model dry and warm bias over central U.S. and impact on climate projections journal October 2017
Top-of-atmosphere radiation budget of convective core/stratiform rain and anvil clouds from deep convective systems: CONVECTIVE CORE ANVIL CLOUD RADIATION journal December 2011
Sensitivity of a Simulated Squall Line to Horizontal Resolution and Parameterization of Microphysics journal January 2012
Application of Object-Based Time-Domain Diagnostics for Tracking Precipitation Systems in Convection-Allowing Models journal June 2014
The Diurnal Cycle in the Tropics journal April 2001
Storm Morphology and Rainfall Characteristics of TRMM Precipitation Features journal October 2006
A Numerical Study of the Genesis of Extratropical Convective Mesovortices. Part I: Evolution and Dynamics journal August 1993
Precipitation Characteristics in Eighteen Coupled Climate Models journal September 2006
A review on regional convection‐permitting climate modeling: Demonstrations, prospects, and challenges journal May 2015
Some Implications of the Mesoscale Circulations in Tropical Cloud Clusters for Large-Scale Dynamics and Climate journal January 1984
Cloud‐resolving model intercomparison of an MC3E squall line case: Part I—Convective updrafts journal September 2017
Evaluation of cloud-resolving and limited area model intercomparison simulations using TWP-ICE observations: 1. Deep convective updraft properties: Eval. of TWP-ICE CRMs and LAMs Pt. 1 journal December 2014
Environmental Factors in the Upscale Growth and Longevity of MCSs Derived from Rapid Update Cycle Analyses journal September 2010
The response of US summer rainfall to quadrupled CO 2 climate change in conventional and superparameterized versions of the NCAR community atmosphere model journal August 2014
Role of clouds and land-atmosphere coupling in midlatitude continental summer warm biases and climate change amplification in CMIP5 simulations journal September 2014
Stratiform Rain in the Tropics as Seen by the TRMM Precipitation Radar* journal June 2003
Variation of Lightning and Convective Rain Fraction in Mesoscale Convective Systems of the MJO journal May 2015
Environments of Long-Lived Mesoscale Convective Systems Over the Central United States in Convection Permitting Climate Simulations: Long-Lived Mesoscale Convective Systems journal December 2017
Introduction to CAUSES: Description of Weather and Climate Models and Their Near‐Surface Temperature Errors in 5 day Hindcasts Near the Southern Great Plains journal March 2018
Impact of Cloud Microphysics on the Development of Trailing Stratiform Precipitation in a Simulated Squall Line: Comparison of One- and Two-Moment Schemes journal March 2009
Global Variability of Mesoscale Convective System Anvil Structure from A-Train Satellite Data journal November 2010
Evaluation of the convection-resolving regional climate modeling approach in decade-long simulations journal July 2014
A ubiquitous ice size bias in simulations of tropical deep convection journal January 2017
A 15 yr climatology of derecho-producing mesoscale convective systems over the central and eastern United States journal January 2003

Similar Records

100 Years of Research on Mesoscale Convective Systems
Journal Article · Wed Sep 19 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Meteorological Monographs · OSTI ID:1459037
Use of ARM observations and numerical models to determine radiative and latent heating profiles of mesoscale convective systems for general circulation models
Technical Report · Thu Mar 14 00:00:00 EDT 2013 · OSTI ID:1459037
The microphysical contributions to and evolution of latent heating profiles in two MC3E MCSs
Journal Article · Sat Jul 09 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres · OSTI ID:1459037
+1 more

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
mesoscale convection
climate simulation
storm tracking
cloud microphysics
precipitation
radar observations