Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Free Atmosphere: Dynamics, Physical Processes, and Measuring Methods

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Meteorology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 March 2022) | Viewed by 12658

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Guest Editor
Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk 664033, Russia
Interests: solar astronomy; millimeter astronomy; site testing; astro-climate; optical turbulence
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk 664033, Russia
Interests: solar astronomy; millimeter astronomy; site testing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) has a significant impact on synoptic and mesoscale meteorology, hydrology, transport of pollutants, weather forecasting and climate as well as the optical turbulence and efficiency of optoelectronic devices. Much is known about the atmospheric boundary layer structure over the plains. However, there is obscurity concerning the strongly nonhomogeneous and nonstationary ABL, the ABL structure and atmospheric turbulence dynamics over complex terrain, structure of the air flows in the upper part of ABL and “adjoining” free atmosphere as well as near the Earth’s surface. The study of atmospheric physics is complicated by the fact that the statistics of the vertical gradients of wind speed and air temperature inducing small-scale turbulence have changed due to climate warming. Therefore, we invite you to publish the results of your research in the Special Issue including the following scientific fields:

  • Physical processes and phenomena in a free atmosphere, interactions with the atmospheric boundary layer;
  • The structure of the atmospheric boundary layer, meteorological phenomena and processes in the ABL, features of the large and mesoscale transfer of air temperature, momentum, pollutions and another substances in the atmosphere;
  • General questions of the theory of turbulence. Two-dimensional, quasi-dimensional, 3D turbulence. Atmospheric turbulence and parameterization schemes;
  • Study of the structure of small-scale dynamic and optical turbulence;
  • Climate changes, regional climate and physical processes in the ABL. Simulation of the components in climatic system;
  • Methods of remote measurements of atmospheric parameters;
  • Astroclimate studies in the optical and mm/submm ranges;
  • Site testing;
  • Atmospheric optical effects;
  • Adaptive optics systems in large ground-based telescopes.

Dr. Artem Shikhovtsev
Dr. Kovadlo Pavel Gavrilovich
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • Free atmosphere
  • Atmospheric boundary layer
  • Climate changes
  • Atmospheric and optical turbulence
  • Turbulence parameterization
  • Measurements
  • Atmospheric optical effects

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Editorial

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3 pages, 184 KiB  
Editorial
Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Free Atmosphere: Dynamics, Physical Processes, and Measuring Methods
by Artem Y. Shikhovtsev and Pavel G. Kovadlo
Atmosphere 2023, 14(2), 328; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14020328 - 7 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1162
Abstract
The article presents the main conclusions obtained in the special issue “Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Free Atmosphere: Dynamics, Physical Processes, and Measuring Methods”. The average meteorological quantities as well as the turbulent characteristics in different atmospheric conditions are considered. Full article

Research

Jump to: Editorial

13 pages, 6436 KiB  
Article
Thermodynamic and Kinematic Structures in the Rainband Region of Typhoon Lekima (2019) at Landfall
by Yuncheng He, Ting Chen, Jie Tang, Pakwai Chan and Jiyang Fu
Atmosphere 2022, 13(2), 312; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13020312 - 13 Feb 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1913
Abstract
Super Typhoon Lekima (2019) was the third strongest tropical cyclone (TC) that has ever made landfall in Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, China. During its passage, the storm resulted in catastrophic disasters to mainland China, which made it one of the costliest typhoons in [...] Read more.
Super Typhoon Lekima (2019) was the third strongest tropical cyclone (TC) that has ever made landfall in Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, China. During its passage, the storm resulted in catastrophic disasters to mainland China, which made it one of the costliest typhoons in Chinese history. This article presents an observational study on the thermodynamic and kinematic structures of Typhoon Lekima at landfall, mainly based on measurements from radiosonde balloons that were released at different periods from a coastal site located with a nearest distance of ~200 km to the track of Lekima. Observations from a weather radar are first discussed to demonstrate the horizontal structure of the typhoon, and the concentric eyewall structure of Lekima is highlighted. Then, Lekima’s pressure field is analyzed, and a two-dimensional model is proposed to quantify both the radial and height dependence of the pressure distribution. The subsequent analysis focuses on the warm-core like structure in the rainband region. The maximum perturbation of measured equivalent potential temperature with respect to the one of environment reached 25 K at ~5 km. Some factors contributing to the warm-core like feature are discussed. The authors of this article finally investigate the TC wind field. Low-level jets of vertical wind profile in rainband areas were observed at heights of around 1–3 km. Dramatic wind shears were observed in the range of 15–17 km where the outflow layer existed, while wind became considerably weak at the tropopause. Full article
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18 pages, 5801 KiB  
Article
Astroclimatic Conditions at the Hoa Lac and Nha Trang Astronomical Observatories
by Artem Y. Shikhovtsev, Pavel G. Kovadlo, Evgeniy A. Kopylov, Mansur A. Ibrahimov and Huy Le Xuan
Atmosphere 2021, 12(12), 1680; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12121680 - 15 Dec 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2160
Abstract
The paper presents the first results of astroclimatic studies at the sites of the Hoa Lac and Nha Trang astronomical observatories. Our study employs Era-5 data covering a 10-yr time period (2011–2020). An analysis of the main astroclimatic characteristic, namely, the wind speed [...] Read more.
The paper presents the first results of astroclimatic studies at the sites of the Hoa Lac and Nha Trang astronomical observatories. Our study employs Era-5 data covering a 10-yr time period (2011–2020). An analysis of the main astroclimatic characteristic, namely, the wind speed in the upper layers of the atmosphere, was performed. We calculated space distributions of the wind speed averaged in the height bin from 100 to 200 hPa. Using hourly data on pressure levels we analyzed probability distributions of the wind speed at high-level maxima at the sites of the observatories. At the Nha Trang observatory the period with a potentially high astroclimatic conditions falls on the spring when high recurrence of weak winds is observed. At the Hoa Lac observatory the best conditions are observed in the summer and the autumn. In this period, the median wind speeds are low. Additionally, we calculated spectra of the air temperature using the Fast Fourier Transform. We analyzed the deformations of the spectra with heights in a wide range of scales. At the site of the Nha Trang Astronomical Observatory, the amplitude of daily air temperature variations in the surface layer is approximately 1.5–2.5 times smaller compared to the Hoa Lac Observatory. We showed that the low-frequency maximum in the spectra is pronounced only in the lower layers of the atmosphere. Full article
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15 pages, 36905 KiB  
Article
Characteristics of Turbulence and Aerosol Optical and Radiative Properties during Haze–Fog Episodes in Shenyang, Northeast China
by Xiaolan Li, Yanjun Ma, Yangfeng Wang, Shuo Lu, Hujia Zhao, Ningwei Liu, Ye Hong and Dongdong Wang
Atmosphere 2021, 12(12), 1658; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12121658 - 10 Dec 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2194
Abstract
The characteristics of turbulence in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and the aerosol optical and radiative properties during haze and haze–fog mixed episodes on 22–27 January 2021, in Shenyang, a provincial city in Northeast China, were analyzed using meteorological and aerosol observations. During [...] Read more.
The characteristics of turbulence in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and the aerosol optical and radiative properties during haze and haze–fog mixed episodes on 22–27 January 2021, in Shenyang, a provincial city in Northeast China, were analyzed using meteorological and aerosol observations. During the haze episode, the hourly mean PM2.5 concentration reached a maximum of 337 µg m−3 and visibility decreased to 1.6 km. The PM2.5 concentration decreased gradually during the haze–fog mixed episode as a result of the scavenging effects of fog, but visibility mostly remained below 1 km owing to high ambient relative humidity (>90%). During the haze–fog mixed episode, an increasing proportion of PM2.5 led to a higher ratio of the backward to the total scattering coefficient. As fog occurred, downward shortwave radiation arriving at the surface was significantly reduced, and upward longwave radiation increased and almost equaled the downward longwave radiation, which can be used as a good indicator for distinguishing haze and fog. Mechanical turbulence was weak during both episodes, and latent heat flux varied within a wider range during the haze–fog mixed episode. The PBL dynamic structure affected the vertical distribution of aerosols/fog droplets. Aerosol-rich layers appeared at altitudes below 0.5 km and above 0.6 km during the haze episode. The elevated aerosol layer was related to the aerosol transport from upstream polluted areas caused by strong upper-level turbulence, and it began to mix vertically after sunrise because of convective turbulence. Aerosols and fog droplets were mostly trapped in a shallower PBL with a height of 0.2–0.4 km during the haze–fog mixed episode because of weaker turbulence. Full article
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11 pages, 3099 KiB  
Article
Statistical Characteristics of Cloud Heights over Lanzhou, China from Multiple Years of Micro-Pulse Lidar Observation
by Xianjie Cao, Gefei Lu, Mengqi Li and Jiayun Wang
Atmosphere 2021, 12(11), 1415; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12111415 - 27 Oct 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1906
Abstract
The macroscopic characteristics of clouds over Lanzhou, China were investigated using micro-pulse lidar data from September 2005 to November 2011. The results show that the mean of the cloud base height, cloud peak height, cloud top height and cloud thickness during the observation [...] Read more.
The macroscopic characteristics of clouds over Lanzhou, China were investigated using micro-pulse lidar data from September 2005 to November 2011. The results show that the mean of the cloud base height, cloud peak height, cloud top height and cloud thickness during the observation was 4.03 km, 4.81 km, 5.50 km and 1.47 km, respectively; the maximum frequency of the cloud base height, cloud peak height, cloud top height and cloud thickness was 25.7% in the range of 1–2 km, 16.2% in the range of 2–3 km, 14.6% in the range of 2–3 km and 42.2% in the range of 1–2 km, respectively; the maximum frequency of cloud base height was 24.2%, 24.6%, 29.7% and 21.4% in spring, summer, autumn and winter, respectively, all in the range of 1–2 km, and middle clouds occurred most frequently at 41.4%, followed by low clouds (33.7%) and high clouds (24.9%) during the observation period; the maximum frequency of cloud peak height was 15.8% in the range of 3–4 km, 18% in the range of 4–5 km, 20% in the range of 2–3 km in autumn and 18.6% in the range of 5–6 km in winter; the maximum frequency of cloud top height was 14% in the range of 3–4 km in spring, 16% in the range of 4–5 km in summer, 20.1% in the range of 2–3 km in autumn and 17.8% in the range of 7–8 km in winter; the maximum frequency of cloud thickness was 44.9%, 35.6% and 52% in the range of 1–2 km in spring, summer and winter, respectively, while it was 44.9% in the range of 0–1 km in autumn; the cloud thickness was mostly less than 3 km; generally, the thicker of cloud, the less the frequency. Full article
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11 pages, 2360 KiB  
Article
Diurnal Dynamics of the Umov Kinetic Energy Density Vector in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer from Minisodar Measurements
by Alexander Potekaev, Nikolay Krasnenko and Liudmila Shamanaeva
Atmosphere 2021, 12(10), 1347; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12101347 - 14 Oct 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1662
Abstract
The diurnal hourly dynamics of the kinetic energy flux density vector, called the Umov vector, and the mean and turbulent components of the kinetic energy are estimated from minisodar measurements of wind vector components and their variances in the lower 200 m layer [...] Read more.
The diurnal hourly dynamics of the kinetic energy flux density vector, called the Umov vector, and the mean and turbulent components of the kinetic energy are estimated from minisodar measurements of wind vector components and their variances in the lower 200 m layer of the atmosphere. During a 24 h period of continuous minisodar observations, it was established that the mean kinetic energy density dominated in the surface atmospheric layer at altitudes below ~50 m. At altitudes from 50 to 100 m, the relative contributions of the mean and turbulent wind kinetic energy densities depended on the time of the day and the sounding altitude. At altitudes below 100 m, the contribution of the turbulent kinetic energy component is small, and the ratio of the turbulent to mean wind kinetic energy components was in the range 0.01–10. At altitudes above 100 m, the turbulent kinetic energy density sharply increased, and the ratio reached its maximum equal to 100–1000 at altitudes of 150–200 m. A particular importance of the direction and magnitude of the wind effect, that is, of the direction and magnitude of the Umov vector at different altitudes was established. The diurnal behavior of the Umov vector depended both on the time of the day and the sounding altitude. Three layers were clearly distinguished: a near-surface layer at altitudes of 5–15 m, an intermediate layer at altitudes from 15 m to 150 m, and the layer of enhanced turbulence above. The feasibility is illustrated of detecting times and altitudes of maximal and minimal wing kinetic energy flux densities, that is, time periods and altitude ranges most and least favorable for flights of unmanned aerial vehicles. The proposed novel method of determining the spatiotemporal dynamics of the Umov vector from minisodar measurements can also be used to estimate the effect of wind on high-rise buildings and the energy potential of wind turbines. Full article
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