The Simulated Impact of the Snow Albedo Feedback on the Large-Scale Mountain–Plain Circulation East of the Colorado Rocky Mountains

Abstract

Abstract The Front Range mountain–plain circulation (FRMC) is a large-scale diurnally driven wind system that occurs east of the Colorado Rocky Mountains in the United States and affects the weather both in the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains. As the climate warms, the snow albedo feedback will amplify the warming response in the Rocky Mountains during the spring, increasing the thermal contrast that drives the FRMC. In this study, the authors perform a 7-yr pseudo–global warming (PGW) regional climate change experiment along with an idealized PGW “fixed albedo” experiment to test the sensitivity of the FRMC to the snow albedo feedback (SAF). The authors find a mean increase in the springtime FRMC strength in the PGW experiment that is primarily driven by the snow albedo feedback. Furthermore, interannual variability of changes in FRMC strength is strongly influenced by interannual variability in the SAF. An additional case study experiment configured with a much higher resolution is performed to examine the finescale details of how the SAF and the FRMC interact. This experiment includes a passive tracer to investigate subsequent impacts on pollution transport. The case study reveals that loss of snow cover causes an increase in the strength of the FRMC. Advection by the strengthened FRMC increases the concentration of tracers emitted over the Great Plains in the boundary layer over the Front Range mountains.