Phys.org December 23, 2024
To understand the impact of mesoscale variability, including gravity waves (GWs), on atmospheric circulation, a team of researchers in the US (Stanford University, Oak Ridge National Laboratory) extracted data from four months of an integrated data at 1 km resolution (XNR1K) using the Integrated Forecast System (IFS) model. They computed zonal and meridional flux of vertical momentum from ~1.5 petabytes of data. The fluxes were validated using ERA5 reanalysis, both during the first week after initialization and over the boreal winter period from November 2018 to February 2019. The agreement between reanalysis and IFS demonstrated its capability to generate reliable flux distributions and capture mesoscale dynamic variability in the atmosphere. According to the researchers the dataset could be valuable in advancing our understanding of GW-planetary wave interactions, GW evolution around atmospheric extremes, and as high-quality training data for machine learning simulation of GWs… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
… gravity waves take shape over Lake Superior when moisture-heavy air encounters air density imbalances… Credit: NASA/ISS