A high resolution complex terrain dispersion study in the Rocky Flats, Colorado vicinity

Conference · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1992

OSTI ID:7303910

Poulos, G S; Bossert, J E

In January/February, 1991 an intensive set of measurements was taken around Rocky Flats near Denver, CO under the auspices of the Department of Energy Atmospheric Studies over Complex Terrain (ASCOT) program. This region of the country is known as the Front Range, and is characterized by a transition from the relatively flat terrain of the Great Plains to the highly varied terrain of the Rocky Mountains. One goal of the ASCOT 1991 program was to gain insight into multi-scale meteorological interaction by observing wintertime drainage conditions at the mountain-valley-plains interface. ASCOT data included surface and upper air measurements on approximately a 50km{sup 2} scale. Simultaneously, an SF{sub 6} tracer release study was being conducted around Rocky Flats, a nuclear materials production facility. Detailed surface concentration measurements were completed for the SF{sub 6} plume. This combination of meteorological and tracer concentration data provided a unique data set for comparisons of mesoscale and dispersion modeling results with observations and for evaluating our capability to predict pollutant transport. Our approach is to use the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) mesoscale model to simulate atmospheric conditions and the Lagrangian Particle Dispersion Model (LPDM), a component of the RAMS system, to model the dispersion of the SF{sub 6}. We have chosen the 4--5 February, 1991 overnight period as our case study. This night was characterized by strong drainage flows from the Rocky Mountains to the west of Rocky Flats, southerly winds in a layer about lkm thick above the drainage flows, and northwesterly winds above that layer extending to the tropopause.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• OSTI ID: 7303910
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-92-2307; CONF-9209158--2; ON: DE92018499
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540110*
58 GEOSCIENCES
580000 -- Geosciences
AIR FLOW
ATMOSPHERIC CIRCULATION
CLIMATE MODELS
CLOUDS
COLORADO
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DISPERSIONS
FEDERAL REGION VIII
FLUID FLOW
GAS FLOW
GEOGRAPHICAL VARIATIONS
GREAT PLAINS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
METEOROLOGY
MOUNTAINS
NORTH AMERICA
ROCKY MOUNTAINS
SIMULATION
TOPOGRAPHY
TURBULENT FLOW
USA
VARIATIONS
WEATHER
WIND