Simulation of coastal flow fields when the incident solar radiation is obscured
In the aftermath of a large scale nuclear exchange, smoke from fires started by the explosions would be lofted into the troposphere and lower stratosphere. If sufficient amounts are injected, this smoke would be so thick that very little solar radiation would penetrate to the ground. The ground surface, obscured from insolation by the smoke, would cool rapidly leading to temperature decreases of 10 to 25/sup 0/C in the lower atmosphere. Among the many possible effects accompanying this cooling, a suggestion has been made that regions of enhanced and persistent precipitation could occur along continental coastlines due to the response of the flow fields to the more rapid cooling of air over land than over the oceans. This paper describes a simulation intended to investigate this super land breeze hypothesis using a mesoscale model that has been used to simulate normal land and sea breeze flows. The simulation shows that fog and clouds form over both land and sea with the net result that there is no dramatic temperature difference at the continental coastline and no significant induced flow or vertical motion. This simulation again contravenes the super land breeze precipitation hypothesis. In addition, it points out the moderating effect cloud and fog formation would have on the rate of cooling over the continents.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 7167504
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-94994; CONF-870358-1; ON: DE87003469
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: International conference on energy transformation and interaction with small and mesoscale atmospheric processes, Lausanne, Switzerland, 2 Mar 1987
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
COASTAL REGIONS
TEMPERATURE GRADIENTS
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
NUCLEAR WINTER
CLOUDS
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
SMOKES
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
WIND
AEROSOLS
COLLOIDS
DISPERSIONS
RESIDUES
SIMULATION
SOLS
WEAPONS
450202* - Explosions & Explosives- Nuclear- Weaponry- (-1989)
500400 - Environment
Atmospheric- Thermal Effluents Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)