Numerical Simulations of Island-Induced Circulations and Windward Katabatic Flow over the Guadeloupe Archipelago (original) (raw)
Related papers
Monthly Weather Review, 2010
The high-resolution (1.5 km) nonhydrostatic fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research (PSU–NCAR) Mesoscale Model (MM5) and an advanced land surface model (LSM) are used to study the island-induced airflow and weather for the island of Oahu, Hawaii, under summer trade wind conditions. Despite Oahu’s relatively small area (1536 km2), there are considerable spatial variations in horizontal distribution of thermodynamic fields related to terrain, airflow, rain, cloud, and ground cover. The largest diurnal variations in temperature and moisture occur in the lee sides of mountains, especially along the western leeside coast. The island-scale surface airflow is also significantly affected by terrain and land surface forcing. The downslope winds above the leeside slopes of both the Ko’olau and Waianae Mountains are simulated with significant diurnal variations with the strongest downslope winds just before sunrise. The timing of diurnal rainfall...