Complex study of characteristics of a Cb cloud developing over the Arabian Peninsula under high dew point deficit in the atmosphere. Part 1. Field observations and numerical modeling

Abstract

Basing on airmass motion trajectory calculations over the Arabian Peninsula on April 10, 2008, it can be assumed that in the lower and middle troposphere, zones with increased air moisture exist due to air inflow from the Red Sea. As a result, mesoscale volumes of dry and moist air are neighboring, though large-scale field is comparatively homogeneous with low humidity. In the mesoscale zones, intense thunderstorm and hailstorm Cb clouds developed, whose characteristics and evolution are studied in the paper. Continuous radar observations of the clouds are carried out during 5 hours. Numerical simulation of the cloud evolution is performed with nonstationary 1.5-dimensional model. It is noted that under the mentioned atmospheric conditions, in the area under consideration, heavy rain and hail from the Cb clouds are observed. The main factors of their origination are high thermal instability of the atmosphere and moist air inflow from outside.