Comparison of ERA5 turbulent fluxes at the air-sea interface with measurements from a wave-following platform

Turbulent fluxes at the air-sea interface were estimated with data collected in 2011-2020 with a low-profile platform named OCARINA during eight experiments in five regions:2011,2015,and 2016 in the Iroise Sea;2012 in the tropical Atlantic;2014 in the Chilie-Peru upwelling;2017 and 2018 in the Mediterranean Sea,and 2018 and 2020 in Barbados.The observations were carried out with moderate winds(2-10 m s^(-1))and average wave heights of 1.5 m.In this study,the authors used the fluxes calculated by the bulk method using OCARINA-sampled data as the input.These data can validate the fluxes estimated from ERAS reanalysis data.The OCARINA and ERA5 data were taken concomitantly.To do this,the authors established an algorithm to extract the OCARINA data as closely as possible to the reanalysis data in time and position.The measurements of the OCARINA platform can conclude on the relevance of the widely used reanalysis data.

Observing the air-sea turbulent heat flux on the trajectory of tropical storm Danas

Tropical cyclones constitute a major risk for coastal communities.To assess their damage potential,accurate predictions of their intensification are needed,which requires a detailed understanding of the evolution of turbulent heat flux(THF).By combining multiple buoy observations along the south north storm track,we investigated the THF anomalies associated with tropical storm Danas(2019)in the East China Sea(ECS)during its complete life cycle from the intensification stage to the mature stage and finally to its dissipation on land.The storm passage is characterized by strong winds of 10-20 m/s and a sea level pressure below 1000 hPa,resulting in a substantial enhancement of THF.Latent heat(LH)fluxes are most strongly affected by wind speed,with a gradually increasing contribution of humidity along the trajectory.The relative contributions of wind speed and temperature anomalies to sensible heat(SH)depend on the stability of the boundary layer.Under stable conditions,SH variations are driven by wind speed,while under near-neutral conditions,SH variations are driven by temperature.A comparison of the observed THF and associated variables with outputs from the ERA 5 and MERRA 2 reanalysis products reveals that the reanalysis products can reproduce the basic evolution and composition of the observed THF.However,under extreme weather conditions,temperature and humidity variations are poorly captured by ERA 5 and MERRA 2,leading to large LH and SH errors.The differences in the observed and reproduced LH and SH during the passage of Danas amount to 26.1 and 6.6 W/m^(2) for ERA 5,respectively,and to 39.4 and 12.5 W/m^(2) for MERRA 2,respectively.These results demonstrate the need to improve the representation of tropical cyclones in reanalysis products to better predict their intensification process and reduce their damage.

Evaluating Parameterizations for Turbulent Fluxes over the Landfast Sea-Ice Surface in Prydz Bay, Antarctica

It is crucial to appropriately determine turbulent fluxes in numerical models.Using data collected in East Antarctica from 8 April to 26 November 2016,this study evaluates parameterization schemes for turbulent fluxes over the landfast seaice surface in five numerical models.The Community Noah Land Surface Model with Multi-Parameterizations Options(Noah_mp)best replicates the turbulent momentum flux,while the Beijing Climate System Model(BCC_CSM)produces the optimum sensible and latent heat fluxes.In particular,two critical issues of parameterization schemes,stability functions and roughness lengths,are investigated.Sensitivity tests indicate that roughness lengths play a decisive role in model performance.Based on the observed turbulent fluxes,roughness lengths over the landfast sea-ice surface are calculated.The results,which can provide a basis for setting up model parameters,reveal that the dynamic roughness length(z0m)increases with the increase of frictional velocity(u*)when u*≤0.4 m s^(−1) and fluctuates around 10^(−3 )m when u*>0.4 m s^(−1);thermal roughness length(z0t)is linearly related to the temperature gradient between air and sea-ice surface(ΔT)with a relation of lg(z0t)=−0.29ΔT−3.86;and the mean water vapor roughness length(z0q)in the specific humidity gradient(Δq)range ofΔq≤−0.6 g kg^(−1) is 10^(−6) m,3.5 times smaller than that in the range ofΔq˃−0.6 g kg^(−1).

Surface Turbulent Flux Measurements over the Loess Plateau for a Semi-Arid Climate Change Study

In order to provide high quality data for climate change studies, the data quality of turbulent flux measurements at the station of SACOL （Semi-Arid Climate ＆ Environment Observatory of Lanzhou University）, which is located on a semi-arid grassland over the Loess Plateau in China, has been analyzed in detail. The effects of different procedures of the flux corrections on CO2, momentum, and latent and sensible heat fluxes were assessed. The result showed that coordinate rotation has a great influence on the momentum flux but little on scalar fluxes. For coordinate rotation using the planar fit method, different regression planes should be determined for different wind direction sectors due to the heterogeneous nature of the ground surface. Sonic temperature correction decreased the sensible heat flux by about 9%, while WPL correction （correction for density fluctuations） increased the latent heat flux by about 10%. WPL correction is also particularly important for CO2 fluxes. Other procedures of flux corrections, such as the time delay correction and frequency response correction, do not significantly influence the turbulent fluxes. Furthermore, quality tests on stationarity and turbulence development conditions were discussed. Parameterizations of integral turbulent characteristics （ITC） were tested and a specific parameterization scheme was provided for SACOL. The ITC test on turbulence development conditions was suggested to be applied only for the vertical velocity. The combined results of the quality tests showed that about 62%-65% of the total data were of high quality for the latent heat flux and CO2 flux, and as much as about 76% for the sensible heat flux. For the momentum flux, however, only about 35% of the data were of high quality.

Estimation of Turbulent Fluxes Using the Flux-Variance Method over an Alpine Meadow Surface in the Eastern Tibetan Plateau

The flux-variance similarity relation and the vertical transfer of scalars exhibit dissimilarity over different types of surfaces, resulting in different parameterization approaches of relative transport efficiency among scalars to estimate turbulent fluxes using the flux-variance method. We investigated these issues using eddycovariance measurements over an open, homogeneous and flat grassland in the eastern Tibetan Plateau in summer under intermediate hydrological conditions during rainy season. In unstable conditions, the temperature, water vapor, and CO2 followed the flux-variance similarity relation, but did not show in precisely the same way due to different roles （active or passive） of these scalars. Similarity constants of temperature, water vapor and CO2 were found to be 1.12, 1.19 and 1.17, respectively. Heat transportation was more eft% cient than water vapor and CO2. Based on the estimated sensible heat flux, five parameterization methods of relative transport efficiency of heat to water vapor and CO2 were examined to estimate latent heat and CO2 fluxes. The strategy of local determination of flux-variance similarity relation is recommended for the estimation of latent heat and CO2 fluxes. This approach is better for representing the averaged relative transport efficiency, and technically easier to apply, compared to other more complex ones.

Characteristics of land-atmosphere energy and turbulentfluxes over the plateau steppe in central Tibetan Plateau

The land-atmosphere energy and turbulence exchange is key to understanding land surface processes on the Tibetan Plateau(TP). Using observed data for Aug. 4 to Dec. 3, 2012 from the Bujiao observation point(BJ) of the Nagqu Plateau Climate and Environment Station(NPCE-BJ), different characteristics of the energy flux during the Asian summer monsoon(ASM) season and post-monsoon period were analyzed. This study outlines the impact of the ASM on energy fluxes in the central TP. It also demonstrates that the surface energy closure rate during the ASM season is higher than that of the post-monsoon period. Footprint modeling shows the distribution of data quality assessments(QA) and quality controls(QC) surrounding the observation point. The measured turbulent flux data at the NPCE-BJ site were highly representative of the target land-use type. The target surface contributed more to the fluxes under unstable conditions than under stable conditions. The main wind directions(180° and 210°) with the highest data density showed flux contributions reaching 100%, even under stable conditions. The lowest flux contributions were found in sectors with low data density, e.g., 90.4% in the 360° sector under stable conditions during the ASM season. Lastly, a surface energy water balance(SEWAB) model was used to gap-fill any absent or corrected turbulence data. The potential simulation error was also explored in this study. The Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency coefficients(NSEs) of the observed fluxes with the SEWAB model runs were 0.78 for sensible heat flux and 0.63 for latent heat flux during the ASM season, but unrealistic values of-0.9 for latent heat flux during the post-monsoon period.

Evaluation of monthly turbulent heat fluxes from WHOI analysis and NCEP reanalysis in the tropical Atlantic

The biases and their sources in monthly turbulent heat fluxes from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution （WHOI） analysis, and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction-National Center for Atmospheric Research reanalyses 1 and 2 （NCEPI and NCEP2） are checked in the climatically representative regions in the tropical Atlantic using the fluxes from the Southampton Oceanographic Centre （SOC） and the pilot research moored array in the tropical Atlantic （PIRATA） as references. For the WHOI analysis, the biases in turbulent heat fluxes mainly exist in equatorial regions which are due to the overestimated sea surface temperature and the underestimated 2 m air humidity. For the NCEP2 reanalysis, the maximum biases, about （40±5） W/m^2, exist in southeast and northeast trade wind regions, which are mainly caused by the flux algorithm used because the biases in wind speed and air-sea humidity difference are relatively small. In the equatorial regions, the flux biases in the NCEP2 derived from both flux-related basic variables and algorithm are equally large. Although the estimations of time series trends and air-sea humidity difference of the NCEPI are improved greatly in the NCEP2, the biases of latent heat flux in the NCEP2 are about 20 W/m^2 greater than those from the NCEP1 in the trade wind regions. The result shows that the climatologies and monthly variabilities of the turbulent heat fluxes from the WHOI are more accurate than those from the NCEP1 and NCEP2 in the tropical Atlantic, especially on outside of the equatorial regions.

A Note on Reviving the Goddard Satellite-Based Surface Turbulent Fluxes (GSSTF) Dataset

Accurate sea surface flux measurements are crucial for understanding the global water and energy cycles. The oceanic evaporation, which is a major component of the global oceanic fresh water flux, is useful for predicting oceanic circulation and transport. The global Goddard Satellite-based Surface Turbulent Fluxes Version-2 （GSSTF2; July 1987–December 2000） dateset that was o？cially released in 2001 has been widely used by scientific community for global energy and water cycle research, and regional and short period data analyses. We have recently been funded by NASA to resume processing the GSSTF dataset with an objective of continually producing a uniform dataset of sea surface turbulent fluxes, derived from remote sensing data. The dataset is to be reprocessed and brought up-to-date （GSSTF2b） using improved input datasets such as a recently upgraded NCEP/DOE sea surface temperature reanalysis, and an upgraded surface wind and microwave brightness temperature V6 dataset （Version 6） from the Special Sensor Microwave Imager （SSM/I） produced by Remote Sensing Systems （RSS）. A second new product （GSSTF3） is further proposed with a finer temporal （12-h） and spatial （0.25° × 0.25°） resolution. GSSTF2b （July 1987–December 2008） and GSSTF3 （July 1999–December 2009） will be released for the research community to use by late 2009 and early 2011, respectively.

Seasonal variability of turbulent heat fluxes in the tropical Atlantic Ocean based on WHOI flux product

The mean seasonal variability of turbulent heat fluxes in the tropical Atlantic Ocean is examined using the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution （WHOI） flux product. The most turbulent heat fluxes occur during winter seasons in the two hemispheres, whose centers are located at 10° -20°N and 5° 15°S respectively. In climatological ITCZ, the turbulent heat fluxes are the greatest from June to August, and in equatorial cold tongue the turbulent heat fluxes are the greatest from March to May. Seasonal variability of sensible heat flux is smaller than that of latent heat flux and mainly is dominated by the variations of air-sea temperature difference. In the region with larger climatological mean wind speed （air-sea humidity difference）, the variations of air-sea humidity difference （wind speed） dominate the variability of latent heat flux. The characteristics of turbulent heat flux yielded from theory analysis and WHOI dataset is consistent in physics which turns out that WHOI＇ s flux data are pretty reliable in the tropical Atlantic Ocean.

Effect of Counter-Gradient in the Computation of Turbulent Fluxes of Heat and Moisture in a Regional Model

The counter-gradient terms in the computations of turbulent fluxes of heat and moisture have been included in the PBL parameterization of a regional model for monsoon prediction. Results show that inclusion of counter-gradient terms has a marginal impact in the prediction of large scale monsoon circulation and rainfall rates.

Observation Research of the Turbulent Fluxes of Momentum, Sensible Heat and Latent Heat over the West Pacific Tropical Ocean Area

This paper describes results of the fluxes of momentum , sensible heat and latent heat for the West Pacific Tropical Ocean Area ( 127 ° E - 150 ° E , 5 ° N -3 ° S ). The data were collected by the small tethered balloon sounding system over this ocean area including 6 continuous stations (140 ° E. 0 ° ; 145 ° E, 0 ° ; 150 ° E, 0 ° ; 140° E, 5 ° N; 145 ° E, 5° N and 150 ° E, 5 ° N) from 11 October to 15 December, 1986 . These fluxes were calculated by the semiempirical flux-profile relationships of Monin-Obukhov similarity theory using these observed data. The results show that for this tropical ocean area the drag coefficient CD is equal to (1.53 ± 0.25) × 10 3 and the daily mean latent flux Hl is greater than its daily mean sensible flux HV by a factor of about 9.

Estimations of Land Surface Characteristic Parameters and Turbulent Heat Fluxes over the Tibetan Plateau Based on FY-4A/AGRI Data

Accurate estimates of land surface characteristic parameters and turbulent heat fluxes play an important role in the understanding of land-atmosphere interaction. In this study, Fengyun-4A (FY-4A) Advanced Geostationary Radiation Imager (AGRI) satellite data and the China Land Data Assimilation System (CLDAS) meteorological forcing dataset CLDAS-V2.0 were applied for the retrieval of broadband albedo, land surface temperature (LST), radiation flux components, and turbulent heat fluxes over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The FY-4A/AGRI and CLDAS-V2.0 data from 12 March 2018 to 30 April 2018 were first used to estimate the hourly turbulent heat fluxes over the TP. The time series data of in-situ measurements from the Tibetan Observation and Research Platform were divided into two halves-one for developing retrieval algorithms for broadband albedo and LST based on FY-4A, and the other for the cross validation. Results show the root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) of the FY-4A retrieved broadband albedo and LST were 0.0309 and 3.85 K, respectively, which verifies the applicability of the retrieval method. The RMSEs of the downwelling/upwelling shortwave radiation flux and downwelling/upwelling longwave radiation flux were 138.87/32.78 W m^(−2) and 51.55/17.92 W m^(−2), respectively, and the RMSEs of net radiation flux, sensible heat flux, and latent heat flux were 58.88 W m^(−2), 82.56 W m^(−2) and 72.46 W m^(−2), respectively. The spatial distributions and diurnal variations of LST and turbulent heat fluxes were further analyzed in detail.

The impact of heterogeneity of land surface roughness length on estimation of turbulent flux in model

Based on preliminary theoretical analysis and numerical experiment, it is found that land surface heterogeneity plays an important role in the models turbulent flux calculation. In nearly neutral atmosphere conditions, variation coefficient of sub-scale roughness length, cell-average roughness, and reference height are main factors affecting the calculation of grid turbulent fluxes. The first factor has a determinant role on calculation deviation. The relative error generated by roughness heterogeneity could be more than 40% in some cases in certain areas （e.g., in vegetation-climate transition belt）. Selecting a specific reference height may improve the calculation of turbulent flux. In stable or unstable atmosphere conditions, with sensible heat flux as an example, analysis shows that the discrepancy is correlated to the sub-grid distributions of mean wind velocity, potential temperature gradient between land surface and reference levels, and atmosphere stability near surface layer caused by the heterogeneity of land surface roughness. The calculation of turbulent flux is the most sensitive to stability in the above three factors. The above analysis shows that it is necessary to make a further consideration for the calculation deviation of the turbulent fluxes brought from land surface heterogeneity in the present numerical models.

A Parameterization Scheme of Surface Turbulent Momentum and Sensible Heat over the Gobi Underlying Surface

The parameterization of surface turbulent fluxes over the Gobi Desert in arid regions is studied by using rationally screened observational data. First, the characteristics of Monin-Obukhov similarity functions are analyzed and their empirical formulae are fitted. The results show that fitted curves of changes of similarity functions of wind speed and temperature with stability parameter differ little from the typical empirical curves and are within the ranges of scatter of the empirical curves, but their values in the neutral condition arc different from the typical values to some extent. Furthermore, average values of momentum and scalar (sensible heat) roughness lengths as well as changes of scalar roughness length with friction velocity are determined by utilizing the data. It is found that the average values of scalar roughness length are about one order smaller than that of the momentum roughness length and decrease with increasing friction velocity, but they are evidently larger than their theoretically forecasted values.

Turbulent Variance Characteristics of Temperature and Humidity over a Non-uniform Land Surface for an Agricultural Ecosystem in China

This paper describes the application of the variance method for flux estimation over a mixed agricultural region in China. Eddy covariance and flux variance measurements were conducted in a near-surface layer over a non-uniform land surface in the central plain of China from 7 June to 20 July 2002. During this period, the mean canopy height was about 0.50 m. The study site consisted of grass （10% of area）, beans （15%）, corn （15%） and rice （60%）. Under unstable conditions, the standard deviations of temperature and water vapor density （normalized by appropriate scaling parameters）, observed by a single instrument, followed the Monin-Obukhov similarity theory. The similarity constants for heat （CT） and water vapor （Cq） were 1.09 and 1.49, respectively. In comparison with direct measurements using eddy covariance techniques, the flux variance method, on average, underestimated sensible heat flux by 21% and latent heat flux by 24%, which may be attributed to the fact that the observed slight deviations （20% or 30% at most） of the similarity ＂constants＂ may be within the expected range of variation of a single instrument from the generally-valid relations.

Discrepancy and Applicability of Various Similarity Functions in Flux Calculations Under Stable Conditions

Based on data obtained during the Hualhe River Basin Experiment （HUBEX） in 1999, this study intends to detect the quantitative discrepancies in the momentum （τ0）, sensible heat （H0） and latent heat （E0） fluxes among six sets of similarity functions with the aerodynamic method. It also aims to clarify the applicability of the functions under stable conditions. The relative discrepancy was studied with the normalized transfer coefficients for τ0, H0 and E0, namely CD, CH and CQ, respectively. Except for one set of functions that adopted a rather small von Kármán＇s constant （0.365）, the relative discrepancy in τ0 among the other functions was less than 10%, while that in H0（E0） sometimes reached 25% when the bulk Richardson number （R/B） was less than 0.07. The absolute discrepancy in the fluxes was studied with statistical computations. Among the six sets of functions, the discrepancy in τ0, H0 and E0 sometimes reached 0.03 kg m^-1 s^-2, 4 W m^-2 and 10 W m^-2, respectively, and the discrepancy in the energy balance ratio sometimes exceeded 0.1. Furthermore, when RiB exceeded the critical value （Ric） for a specific set of functions, no fluxes could be derived with the functions. It is therefore suggested that RiB be compared with Ric before computing the fluxes if RiB is less than Ric. Finally, two sets of nonlinear similarity functions are recommended, due to their unlimited applicability in terms of RiB.

Improvement of surface flux calculation:A study based on measurements over alpine meadow in the eastern Tibet Plateau in summer

An improved flux-gradient relationship between momentum φm（ζ） and sensible heat φh（ζ） is obtained by the use of the observational data over an alpine meadow in the eastern Tibet Plateau, in Maqu of China during the period June to August, 2010. The empirical coefficients of Businger-Dyer type function for the cases of unstable and stable stratification are modified. Non-dimensional vertical gradients of wind and potential temperature are calculated by three fitting func- tions; that is, the log-linear, log-square, and log--cubic functions, respectively. It is found that the von Karman constant approaches 0.4025 and the Prandtl number is about 1.10 based on the measurements in near-neutral conditions, which are within reasonable range proposed in previous studies. The revised flux-gradient profile functions of -1/5 power law for momentum and - 1/3 power law for sensible heat are best fitted in unstable stratification conditions. Meanwhile, 2/5 power law, instead of linear functions, is more appropriate in stable stratification cases for momentum and sensible heat. Com- pared with results from previous studies in which traditional functions are used, the momentum and sensible heat fluxes estimated by the revised profile functions in the current study are much closer to the observations for the unstable and stable stratification conditions.

Coastal buoy observation of air-sea net heat flux in the East China Sea in summer 2020

The full fluxes and associated air-sea variables based on three months of operational buoy observations in the East China Sea(ECS)in summer 2020 were analyzed for the first time.The surface net heat flux(Q_(net))was positive(139.7±77.7 W/m^(2))and was dominated by the combined eff ects of solar shortwave radiation(SW)and latent heat fluxes(LH).The mean heat flux components of 4 reanalysis datasets(NCEP2,MERRA-2,CFSR,and ERA5)and buoy data were compared to assess the mean ability of the modeling/reanalysis simulation.Among the four components of air-sea flux,SW was the best simulated,while LH was the worst simulated.The longwave radiation(LW)and LH values from reanalysis were higher than those from buoy data,especially LH.The high LH resulted in low Q_(net).Furthermore,the 4 reanalysis datasets were compared with the buoy dataset.Among all flux products,the difference in radiation flux was the smallest,while that in the turbulent flux was the greatest.The observed variables related to turbulent flux were analyzed to help determine the cause of the flux discrepancies.High wind speeds were the main cause of this difference.Using the variables provided by the reanalysis data and the same bulk formulas of the Coupled Ocean-Atmospheric Response Experiment(COARE 3.0),we found that the recalculated sensible heat flux(SH)and LH were closer to the observed heat fluxes than the direct model outputs.The signifi cant diff erences between these methods could account for the discrepancies among diff erent data.Among all air-sea flux products,the air-sea flux in ERA5 was closer to the in-situ observations than the other products.The comparison results of reanalysis data provide an important reference for more accurate studies of the summer heat flux in the ECS at the synoptic and climatic scales.

A METHOD FOR DETERMINING TURBULENT TRANSFER IN THE ATMOSPHERIC SURFACE LAYER

Derivation of bulk transport coefficients helps solving land surface processes. A similarity-based method for determining the turbulent transfer (including the flux exchange, the vertical distribution of wind and potential temperature) in the atmospheric surface layer is presented. Comparisons with iterative schemes (Businger, 1971) are given to demonstrate the advantages of the calculation methods.

On the turbulent heat fluxes:A comparison among satellite-based estimates,atmospheric reanalyses,and in-situ observations during the winter climate over Arctic sea ice

The surface energy budget is crucial for Arctic sea ice mass balance calculation and climate systems,among which turbulent heat fluxes significantly affect the airesea exchanges of heat and moisture in the atmospheric boundary layer.Satellite observations(e.g.CERES and APPX)and atmospheric reanalyses(e.g.,ERA5)are often used to represent components of the energy budget at regional and pan-Arctic scales.However,the uncertainties of the satellite-based turbulent heat fluxes are largely unknown,and cross-comparisons with reanalysis data and insitu observations are limited.In this study,satellite-based turbulent heat fluxes were assessed against in-situ observations from the N-ICE2015 drifting ice station(north of Svalbard,JanuaryeJune 2015)and ERA5 reanalysis.The turbulent heat fluxes were calculated by two approaches using the satellite-based ice surface temperature and radiative fluxes,surface atmospheric parameters from ERA5,and snow/sea ice thickness from the pan-Arctic Ice Ocean Modeling and Assimilation System(PIOMAS).We found that the bulk-aerodynamic formula based results could better capture the variations of turbulent heat fluxes,while the maximum entropy production based estimates are comparable with ERA5 in terms of root-mean-square error(RMSE).CERES-based estimates outperform the APP-X-based ones but ERA5 performs the best in all seasons(RMSE of 18 and 7 W m^(-2)for sensible and latent heat flux,respectively).The aireice temperature/humidity differences and the surface radiation budget were found the primary driving factors in the bulk-formula method and maximum entropy production(MEP)method,respectively.Furthermore,errors in the surface and near-surface temperature and humidity explain almost 50%of the uncertainties in the estimates based on the bulk-formula,whereas errors in the net radiative fluxes explain more than 50%of the uncertainties in the MEP-based results.