Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Park, Hyung‐Ju
• Kim, Kwang‐Yul

Titel

Physical mechanisms of surface wind variability at Incheon Airport

Ist Teil von

• International journal of climatology, 2020-02, Vol.40 (2), p.1090-1106

Ort / Verlag

Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2020

Quelle

Wiley Online Library

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• The mechanisms of surface wind variability observed by Aerodrome Meteorological Observation System at Incheon International Airport (IIA), located near the western coast of the Korean Peninsula, are investigated using cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function (CSEOF) analysis. Despite the complex nature of surface wind, as various factors contribute to its variance, distinct features of surface wind variability are separated reasonably into CSEOF modes. The physical interpretation of each mode using the ERA‐Interim reanalysis data is accomplished through regression analysis in CSEOF space. In essence, three atmospheric features dominate the surface wind variability: East Asian monsoon, land–sea breeze, and baroclinic waves. East Asian monsoon, the first mode, explains ~12% of the total variance of the surface wind at IIA. The annual reversal of the monsoon circulation due to the thermal contrast between the Asian continent and the western Pacific is captured as the single most dominant source of surface wind variability at IIA. The second CSEOF mode reveals that zonal circulation induced by land–sea breeze dominates the diurnal variation of the surface wind at IIA, and explains ~8% of the total variance. The largest fraction of variability is associated with baroclinic waves, which is separated into many CSEOF modes due to their irregular phase and wavelength, and the locations of vortex centre. Modes 3–10 are all associated with baroclinic waves and they together explain ~42% of the total variance. Baroclinic waves are amplified as they move over the ocean due to strong turbulent flux from the ocean surface induced by the associated upper tropospheric vortices. The contribution of synoptic waves to the variability of surface wind observed at the Incheon Airport is extracted by using CSEOF analysis. The panels show the spatiotemporal evolution of upper‐level PV and lower‐level GP, which change the wind direction from northeasterly to southwesterly during a period of 7 days. The baroclinicity is intensified by oceanic emission of heat flux as the synoptic system enters the oceanic regime. The wave‐induced surface wind explains 42% of the total variance.