Diagnostic analysis of mesoscale rainstorms in the Jiang-Huai valley of China with convective vorticity vector

Abstract

By the vector product of absolute vorticity vectors and equivalent potential temperature gradients, a new vector, convective vorticity vector (CVV) is readdressed after Gao et al., and is applied to the study of the development and movement of mesoscale rainstorms in the Jiang-Huai valley of China by using high-resolution simulation data with PSU/NCAR MM5 briefly. The results show that the CVV, especially its vertical component which is closely related to interactions between vertical secondary circulations and horizontal equivalent potential temperature gradients, may be a good tracer and diagnostic tool in the study of mesoscale rainstorms in the Jiang-Huai valley of China. And the main physical processes responsible for the variations of the vertical component of the CVV are discussed briefly based on its tendency equation proposed in this article.