Mountain waves modulate the water vapor distribution in the UTLS

Author:

Heller Romy,Voigt ChristianeORCID,Beaton Stuart,Dörnbrack AndreasORCID,Giez Andreas,Kaufmann StefanORCID,Mallaun Christian,Schlager Hans,Wagner Johannes,Young Kate,Rapp MarkusORCID

Abstract

Abstract. The water vapor distribution in the upper troposphere–lower stratosphere (UTLS) region has a strong impact on the atmospheric radiation budget. Transport and mixing processes on different scales mainly determine the water vapor concentration in the UTLS. Here, we investigate the effect of mountain waves on the vertical transport and mixing of water vapor. For this purpose we analyze measurements of water vapor and meteorological parameters recorded by the DLR Falcon and NSF/NCAR Gulfstream V research aircraft taken during the Deep Propagating Gravity Wave Experiment (DEEPWAVE) in New Zealand. By combining different methods, we develop a new approach to quantify location, direction and irreversibility of the water vapor transport during a strong mountain wave event on 4 July 2014. A large positive vertical water vapor flux is detected above the Southern Alps extending from the troposphere to the stratosphere in the altitude range between 7.7 and 13.0 km. Wavelet analysis for the 8.9 km altitude level shows that the enhanced upward water vapor transport above the mountains is caused by mountain waves with horizontal wavelengths between 22 and 60 km. A downward transport of water vapor with 22 km wavelength is observed in the lee-side of the mountain ridge. While it is a priori not clear whether the observed fluxes are irreversible, low Richardson numbers derived from dropsonde data indicate enhanced turbulence in the tropopause region related to the mountain wave event. Together with the analysis of the water vapor to ozone correlation, we find indications for vertical transport followed by irreversible mixing of water vapor. For our case study, we further estimate greater than 1 W m−2 radiative forcing by the increased water vapor concentrations in the UTLS above the Southern Alps of New Zealand, resulting from mountain waves relative to unperturbed conditions. Hence, mountain waves have a great potential to affect the water vapor distribution in the UTLS. Our regional study may motivate further investigations of the global effects of mountain waves on the UTLS water vapor distributions and its radiative effects.

Funder

Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft

Publisher

Copernicus GmbH

Subject

Atmospheric Science

Reference61 articles.

1. Bramberger, M., Dörnbrack, A., Bossert, K., Ehard, B., Fritts, D. C., Kaifler, B., Mallaun, C., Orr, A., Pautet, P. D., Rapp, M., Taylor, M. J., Vosper, S., Williams, B., and Witschas, B.: Does strong tropospheric forcing cause large-amplitude mesospheric gravity waves? – A DEEPWAVE Case Study, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 122, 11422–11443, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JD027371, 2017.

2. Danielsen, E. F., Hipskind, R. S., Starr, W. L., Vedder, J. F., Gaines, S. E., Kley, D., and Kelly, K. K.: Irreversible Transport in the Stratosphere by Internal Waves of Short Vertical Wavelength, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 96, 17433–17452, https://doi.org/10.1029/91jd01362, 1991.

3. Ehard, B., Kaifler, B., Kaifler, N., and Rapp, M.: Evaluation of methods for gravity wave extraction from middle-atmospheric lidar temperature measurements, Atmos. Meas. Tech., 8, 4645–4655, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-8-4645-2015, 2015.

4. Ehard, B., Achtert, P., Dörnbrack, A., Gisinger, S., Gumbel, J., Khaplanov, M., Rapp, M., and Wagner, J.: Combination of Lidar and Model Data for Studying Deep Gravity Wave Propagation, Mon. Weather Rev., 144, 77–98, https://doi.org/10.1175/mwr-d-14-00405.1, 2016.

5. Fischer, H., Wienhold, F. G., Hoor, P., Bujok, O., Schiller, C., Siegmund, P., Ambaum, M., Scheeren, H. A., and Lelieveld, J.: Tracer correlations in the northern high latitude lowermost stratosphere: Influence of cross-tropopause mass exchange, Geophys. Res. Lett., 27, 97–100, https://doi.org/10.1029/1999gl010879, 2000.

Cited by 16 articles. 订阅此论文施引文献 订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3