A Numerical Study of the Along-Line Variability of a Frontal Squall Line during PRE-STORM

Abstract

Despite considerable progress in the understanding of two-dimensional structures of squall lines, little attention has been paid to the along-line variability of these convective systems. In this study, the roles of meso- and larger-scale circulations in the generation of along-line variability of squall lines are investigated, using an 18-h prediction of a frontal squall line that occurred on 26–27 June 1985 during PRE-STORM (Preliminary Regional Experiment for Stormscale Operational Research Meteorology). It is shown that the Canadian regional finite-element (RFE) model reproduces reasonably well a number of surface and vertical circulation structures of the squall system, as verified against available network observations. These include the initiation, propagation, and dissipation of the squall system, surface pressure perturbations, and cold outflow boundaries; a midlevel mesolow and an upper-level mesohigh; a front-to-rear (FTR) ascending flow overlying an intense rear-to-front (RTF) flow; and a leading convective line followed by stratiform precipitation regions. It is found that across-line circulations at the northern segment of the squall line differ significantly from those at its southern segment, including the different types of precipitation, the absence of the RTF flow and midlevel mesolow, and the early dissipation of organized convection in the northern part. The along-line variability of the squall’s circulations results primarily from the interaction of convectively generated perturbations with a midlevel baroclinic trough. The large-scale trough provides an extensive RTF flow component in the southern portion of the squall system and an FTR flow component in the north, whereas the midlevel mesolow tends to enhance the RTF flow to the south and the FTR flow to the north of the mesolow during the mature to decaying stages. The along-line variability of the squall’s circulations appears to be partly responsible for the generation of different weather conditions along the line, such as the development of an upper-level stratiform region in the southern segment and a midlevel cloud region in the northern portion of the squall line.