Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations

Angevine, Wayne M.; Olson, Joseph; Kenyon, Jaymes; Gustafson, Jr., William I.; Endo, Satoshi; Suselj, Kay; Turner, David D.

doi:10.1175/MWR-D-18-0115.1

Title: Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations

Abstract

Shallow cumulus is a challenge to mesoscale numerical weather prediction models. These cloud fields have important effects on temperature, solar irradiance, convective initiation, and pollutant transport, among others. Recent improvements to physics schemes available in the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF) aim to improve representation of shallow cumulus, in particular over land. The DOE LES ARM Symbiotic Simulation and Observation Workflow (LASSO) project provides several cases that we use here to test the new physics improvements. The LASSO cases use multiple analyses to drive Large Eddy Simulations (LES), and the LES output is easily compared to output from WRF single-column simulations driven with the same analyses. The new Mellor-Yamada Nakanishi and Niino (MYNN) Eddy Diffusivity Mass Flux (EDMF) boundary layer and shallow cloud scheme produces clouds with timing, liquid water path, and cloud fraction that agree well with LES over a wide range of those variables. Here we examine those variables and test the scheme’s sensitivity to perturbations of a few key parameters. We also discuss the challenges and uncertainties of single-column tests. The older, simpler Total Energy Mass Flux (TEMF) scheme is included as a baseline.

Authors:

Angevine, Wayne M. ^[1]; Olson, Joseph ^[1]; Kenyon, Jaymes ^[1]; Gustafson, Jr., William I. ^[2]; Endo, Satoshi ^[3]; Suselj, Kay ^[4]; Turner, David D. ^[5]

Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, and NOAA/Earth System Research Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado
Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington
Environmental and Climate Sciences Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California
NOAA/Earth System Research Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado

Publication Date:: Wed Nov 28 00:00:00 EST 2018

Research Org.:: Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)

OSTI Identifier:: 1483710

Alternate Identifier(s):: OSTI ID: 1481400; OSTI ID: 1507436

Report Number(s):: BNL-209428-2018-JAAM; PNNL-SA-132389
Journal ID: ISSN 0027-0644

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0012704; AC05-76RL01830

Resource Type:: Published Article

Journal Name:: Monthly Weather Review

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Name: Monthly Weather Review Journal Volume: 146 Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 0027-0644

Publisher:: American Meteorological Society

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; Shallow cumulus; WRF; MYNN; EDMF; LASSO; LES; RAP; HRRR; single-column model (SCM); TEMF; total turbulent energy; large-eddy simulation; cloud

Citation Formats


                    Angevine, Wayne M., Olson, Joseph, Kenyon, Jaymes, Gustafson, Jr., William I., Endo, Satoshi, Suselj, Kay, and Turner, David D. Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations.  United States: N. p., 2018. 
Web.  doi:10.1175/MWR-D-18-0115.1.

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                    Angevine, Wayne M., Olson, Joseph, Kenyon, Jaymes, Gustafson, Jr., William I., Endo, Satoshi, Suselj, Kay, & Turner, David D. Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-18-0115.1

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                    Angevine, Wayne M., Olson, Joseph, Kenyon, Jaymes, Gustafson, Jr., William I., Endo, Satoshi, Suselj, Kay, and Turner, David D. Wed .  
"Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-18-0115.1.

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@article{osti_1483710,

  title        = {Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations},

  author       = {Angevine, Wayne M. and Olson, Joseph and Kenyon, Jaymes and Gustafson, Jr., William I. and Endo, Satoshi and Suselj, Kay and Turner, David D.},

  abstractNote = {Shallow cumulus is a challenge to mesoscale numerical weather prediction models. These cloud fields have important effects on temperature, solar irradiance, convective initiation, and pollutant transport, among others. Recent improvements to physics schemes available in the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF) aim to improve representation of shallow cumulus, in particular over land. The DOE LES ARM Symbiotic Simulation and Observation Workflow (LASSO) project provides several cases that we use here to test the new physics improvements. The LASSO cases use multiple analyses to drive Large Eddy Simulations (LES), and the LES output is easily compared to output from WRF single-column simulations driven with the same analyses. The new Mellor-Yamada Nakanishi and Niino (MYNN) Eddy Diffusivity Mass Flux (EDMF) boundary layer and shallow cloud scheme produces clouds with timing, liquid water path, and cloud fraction that agree well with LES over a wide range of those variables. Here we examine those variables and test the scheme’s sensitivity to perturbations of a few key parameters. We also discuss the challenges and uncertainties of single-column tests. The older, simpler Total Energy Mass Flux (TEMF) scheme is included as a baseline.},

  doi          = {10.1175/MWR-D-18-0115.1},

  journal      = {Monthly Weather Review},

  number       = 12,

  volume       = 146,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Wed Nov 28 00:00:00 EST 2018},

  month        = {Wed Nov 28 00:00:00 EST 2018}

}

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Works referencing / citing this record:

Validating the Water Vapor Variance Similarity Relationship in the Interfacial Layer Using Observations and Large‐Eddy Simulations
journal, October 2019

Osman, M. K.; Turner, D. D.; Heus, T.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 124, Issue 20
DOI: 10.1029/2019jd030653

Validating the Water Vapor Variance Similarity Relationship in the Interfacial Layer Using Observations and Large‐Eddy Simulations
journal, October 2019

Osman, M. K.; Turner, D. D.; Heus, T.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 124, Issue 20
DOI: 10.1029/2019jd030653

The future of forecasting for renewable energy
journal, September 2019

Sweeney, Conor; Bessa, Ricardo J.; Browell, Jethro
WIREs Energy and Environment, Vol. 9, Issue 2
DOI: 10.1002/wene.365

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Title: Shallow Cumulus in WRF Parameterizations Evaluated against LASSO Large-Eddy Simulations

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