Abstract
Abstract. Drifting snowstorms are an important aeolian process that reshape alpine glaciers and polar ice shelves, and they may also affect the climate system and hydrological cycle since flying snow particles exchange considerable mass and energy with air flow. Prior studies have rarely considered full-scale drifting snowstorms in the turbulent boundary layer; thus, the transportation feature of snow flow higher in the air and its contribution are largely unknown. In this study, a large-eddy simulation is combined with a subgrid-scale velocity model to simulate the atmospheric turbulent boundary layer, and a Lagrangian particle tracking method is adopted to track the trajectories of snow particles. A drifting snowstorm that is hundreds of meters in depth and exhibits obvious spatial structures is produced. The snow transport flux profile at high altitude, previously not observed, is quite different from that near the surface; thus, the extrapolated transport flux profile may largely underestimate the total transport flux. At the same time, the development of a drifting snowstorm involves three typical stages, rapid growth, gentle growth, and equilibrium, in which large-scale updrafts and subgrid-scale fluctuating velocities basically dominate the first and second stages, respectively. This research provides an effective way to gain an insight into natural drifting snowstorms.
Highlights
Snow, one type of solid precipitation, is an important source of material to mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets, which are widespread throughout high and cold regions (Chang et al, 2016; Gordon and Taylor, 2009; Lehning et al, 2008)
When drifting snow occurs in the atmospheric boundary layer, updrafts and turbulence fluctuations can send snow particles to high altitude, forming a fully developed drifting snowstorm
It can be seen that drifting snowstorms experience an evolution process from near the surface to high altitudes, in which particle concentration decreases with increasing height
Summary
One type of solid precipitation, is an important source of material to mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets, which are widespread throughout high and cold regions (Chang et al, 2016; Gordon and Taylor, 2009; Lehning et al, 2008). Jia: A simulation of a large-scale drifting snowstorm in the turbulent boundary layer full-scale drifting snowstorm is essential to understand this natural phenomenon and assess its impacts. A series of particle tracking models (Huang et al, 2016; Huang and Shi, 2017; Huang and Wang, 2015, 2016; Nemoto and Nishimura, 2004; Zhang and Huang, 2008; Zwaaftink et al, 2014) have been established, these models have generally focused on the grain–bed interactions and particle motions near the surface. A drifting snow model aimed at producing a large-scale drifting snowstorm in a turbulent boundary layer deserves further exploration. A drifting snow model in the atmospheric boundary layer that focuses on a full-scale drifting snowstorm is established. The large-scale drifting snowstorm is produced under the actions of large-scale turbulent structures combined with a steady-state snow saltation boundary condition for particles, and its spatial structures and transport features are analyzed
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