Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies

RESEARCH

 

Climatic Effects of /Controls on Mesoscale Processes

Perform research to improve understanding of the relationships between mesoscale processes and regional climate, supporting NOAA’s goal to understand climate variability and change to enhance society’s ability to plan and respond

The primary goal of this thematic area is to extend and apply the understanding of mesoscale processes to the problem of climate maintenance and change. This theme also includes investigation of the influence of the large-scale climatic environment on the mesoscale systems that produce growing season rainfall in regions such as central North America and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Research on climate effects/controls on mesoscale processes will lead to:

  1. New insights into the complex land-atmosphere interactions over the agriculturally important U.S. Midwest
  2. Improved understanding of the influence of North Atlantic cyclones on the weather and climate of surrounding areas
  3. Improved understanding of the potential feedback between the atmosphere and the land/ocean/cryosphere
  4. New insights into the potential links between climate variability and severe storm frequency and severity

Research funded under this theme in fiscal year 2007:

Variability of the Intertropical Front and Rainfall over the West Africa Soudano-Sahel LeLe, Lamb (primary – CIMMS at OU)
Objectives:Document the intra-seasonal characteristics of intertropical front (ITF) displacements during its northward movement at the beginning of the rainy season and its southward retreat at the end of the rainy season; investigate the relationship between the variability of the ITF latitudinal position and summer monsoon rainfall amount in West Africa Soudano-Sahelian countries where society needs improved weather and seasonal climate prediction. [more]
Evaluation and Adaptation of a Regional Climate Model for the Horn of Africa Segele, Lamb (primary – CIMMS at OU), Leslie
Objectives:Evaluate the Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) version 3 RCM (RegCM3) to reproduce the observed rainfall amounts and distribution over the topographically varied region of the Horn of Africa. [more]
Collaboration and Cooperation within the ACMAD Core Demonstration Project in Climate Prediction between ACMAD and CIMMS Lamb (primary – CIMMS at OU), LeLe, Segele, Mbainayel
Objectives: Continued research collaboration and cooperation between the African Centre of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD) and CIMMS. [more]
Investigation of Synoptic and Mesoscale Meteorological Processes Associated with Hazardous Weather: Explaining the Spatial Variability of the Mid-Summer Drought over the Inter-American Seas Region Douglas (primary – NSSL), Murillo, Mejia, Orozco
Objectives:Map, at high spatial resolution, and explain the variability in rainfall and cloudiness associated with the mid-summer dry season that occurs over parts of the Caribbean Sea and Central America region. [more]
Large-Eddy Observations and LES of Liquid Stratus over the ARM Southern Great Plains Climate Research Facility Mechem (primary – CIMMS at OU), Y. Kogan, Schultz
Objectives:Employ high resolution Doppler cloud radar and large eddy simulation to analyze the structure and dynamics of continental stratocumulus. [more]
Parameterization of Drop Spectra in Drizzling Stratocumulus Clouds Z. Kogan (primary – CIMMS at OU), Y. Kogan, Mechem
Objectives:Parameterize drop spectra by analytical functions for use in remote sensing retrievals and cloud parameterization. [more]
Assessment of the Severe Weather Environment in North America Simulated by a Global Climate Model Karoly (primary – OU School of Meteorology), Marsh, Brooks
Objectives: Estimate the frequency distribution of favorable conditions for severe weather from archived highresolution data from simulations with the NCAR CCSM3 global climate model; evaluate the modelsimulated distribution by comparison with that from global reanalyses, including the climatological seasonal and spatial variations, and the interannual variability. [more]