• Atmosphere
• /
• v.18 no.3
• /
• pp.207-224
• /
• 2008

Severe downslope windstorms observed at Gangneung, Korea in the springtime during the last 30 years are studied to understand their generation mechanisms. 92 severe wind cases are selected for which the maximum instantaneous wind speeds exceed two standard deviation of total mean plus ($18.7ms^{-1}$). They are categorized into the three mechanisms (hydraulic jump, partial reflection, and critical-level reflection) proposed in previous studies based on the flow condition, which is calculated using the wind and temperature profile observed at one upstream rawinsonde station, Osan. Among the three, partial reflection is found to be the most frequent mechanism for the last 30 years (1976 - 2005). To understand the role of inversion in generating severe downslope windstorms, horizontal velocity perturbation was calculated analytically for the atmosphere with an inversion layer. It turned out that the intensity of downslope wind was increased by inversion layer of specific heights, which are well matched with the observations. For better understanding the generation mechanisms, two-dimensional numerical simulations are conducted for the 92 severe wind cases using the ARPS model. In most simulations, surface wind speed exceeds the value of the severe-wind criterion, and each simulated case can be explained by its own generation mechanism. However, in most simulations, the simulated surface wind speed is larger than the observed, due to ignoring the flow-splitting effect in the two-dimensional framework.

• Atmosphere
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.231-240
• /
• 2007

The flow regimes of continuously stratified flow over a double mountain and the effects of a double mountain on wave breaking, upstream blocking, and severe downslope windstorms are investigated using a mesoscale numerical model (ARPS). According to the occurrence or non-occurrence of wave breaking and upstream blocking, three different flow regimes are identified over a double mountain. Higher critical Froude numbers are required for wave breaking and upstream blocking initiation for a double mountain than for an isolated mountain. This means that the nonlinearity and blocking effect for a double mountain is larger than that for an isolated mountain. As the separation distance between two mountains decreases, the degree of flow nonlinearity increases, while the blocking effect decreases. A rapid increase of the surface horizontal velocity downwind of each mountain near the critical mountain height for wave breaking initiation indicates that severe downslope windstorms are enhanced by wave breaking. For the flow with wave breaking, the numerically calculated surface drag is much larger than theoretically calculated one because the region with the maximum negative perturbation pressure moves from the top to the downwind slope of each mountain as the internal jump propagating downwind occurs.