Gopal presents work on model boundary-layer schemes to the HFIP bi-weekly meeting
Sundararaman “Gopal” Gopalakrishnan reported recent work on boundary-layer parameterization schemes in hurricane models at the 5 August bi-weekly Hurricane Forecast Improvement Program meeting. The hurricane boundary layer is the area of the atmosphere closest to the ocean air where the energy in the form of heat and moisture from the warm ocean is transferred to hurricane itself, and where friction from the surface impacts the wind above. Because these impacts occur on scales far smaller than what the model itself can resolve, we use schemes called “parameterizations” to approximate what is happening there. This presentation discussed comparison of these parameterizations to actual observations in hurricanes in an effort to improve forecasts in this crucial region.
