Assessing the shear-sheltering theory applied to low-level jets in the nocturnal stable boundary layer

This paper investigates the existence of shear sheltering on turbulence data over a quasi-ideal experimental site in Oklahoma, USA. Originally developed for engineering flows, the shear-sheltering theory is predicated upon the idea of low-level jets blocking large eddies aloft, preventing them from...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Theoretical and applied climatology 2012-12, Vol.110 (3), p.359-371
Main Authors: Duarte, Henrique F., Leclerc, Monique Y., Zhang, Gengsheng
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Aquatic Pollution
Atmospheric boundary layer
Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution
Atmospheric Sciences
Boundary layers
Climate science
Climatology
Earth and Environmental Science
Earth Sciences
Eddies
Marine
Original Paper
Turbulence
Turbulence models
Waste Water Technology
Water Management
Water Pollution Control
Wind shear
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Summary:This paper investigates the existence of shear sheltering on turbulence data over a quasi-ideal experimental site in Oklahoma, USA. Originally developed for engineering flows, the shear-sheltering theory is predicated upon the idea of low-level jets blocking large eddies aloft, preventing them from propagating to the surface. In this scenario, suppression of low-frequency turbulence energy and reduction of surface fluxes would be expected. Results from the Oklahoma experiment show instead an enhancement of surface turbulence intensity and of the relative contribution of large scales to total (co)variances for low-level jet cases with strong shear, thus suggesting the absence of shear sheltering at the site. The results underline the complexity of surface-atmosphere interactions in nocturnal stable conditions. Atmospheric modeling of exchange using various scenarios of surface characteristics, flow regimes, and low-level jet properties is suggested to further assess the potential applicability of the shear-sheltering theory to atmospheric flows.
ISSN:0177-798X
1434-4483
DOI:10.1007/s00704-012-0621-2