• Medientyp: E-Artikel
  • Titel: An observation of sea‐spray microphysics by airborne Doppler radar
  • Beteiligte: Fairall, C. W.; Pezoa, S.; Moran, K.; Wolfe, D.
  • Erschienen: American Geophysical Union (AGU), 2014
  • Erschienen in: Geophysical Research Letters, 41 (2014) 10, Seite 3658-3665
  • Sprache: Englisch
  • DOI: 10.1002/2014gl060062
  • ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
  • Entstehung:
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  • Beschreibung: AbstractThis paper describes observations and analysis of Doppler radar data from a down‐looking 94 GHz (W‐Band) system operated from a NOAA WP‐3 Orion research aircraft in Tropical Storm (TS) Karen. The flight took place on 5 October 2013; Karen had weakened with maximum winds around 20 m s−1. Doppler spectral moments from the radar were processed to retrieve sea‐spray microphysical properties (drop size and liquid water mass concentration) profiles in the height range 75–300 m above the sea surface. In the high wind speed regions of TS Karen (U10 > 15 m s−1), sea spray was observed with a nominal mass‐mode radius of about 40 µm, a radar‐weighted gravitational fall velocity of about 1 m s−1, and a mass concentration of about 10−3 gm−3 at 75 m. Spray‐drop mass concentration declined with height to values of about 10−4 gm−3 at 300 m. Drop mass decreased slightly more slowly with increasing height than predicted by surface‐layer similarity theory for a balance of turbulent diffusion vs fall velocity.
  • Zugangsstatus: Freier Zugang