Diurnal cycle of precipitation over the Maritime Continent simulated by a spectral cumulus parameterization

Abstract

The validity of a spectral cumulus parameterization (spectral scheme) for simulating a diurnal cycle of precipitation over the Maritime Continent (MC) was examined using a regional atmospheric model. The impacts of entrainment parameterization and each type of convective closure, i.e., non-equilibrium (or equilibrium) closure for deep convection, mid-level, and shallow convective closures, were also examined. When vertically variable entrainment and appropriate convective closures were employed, the model adequately simulated a diurnal cycle of precipitation over both land and ocean as compared to the observation. Analysis regarding the entrainment parameterization revealed that variable entrainment parameterization was needed not only for simulating better mean patterns of precipitation, but also for more realistic phases of diurnal cycles. The impacts of convective closures appeared in the differences in the precipitation amplitude. Analysis on diurnal cycles of convective properties and tendencies revealed that the cycles between boundary layer forcing and convective heating determined convection strength and were affected by each type of convective closure. It can be concluded that the spectral scheme with appropriate convective closures is able to simulate a realistic diurnal cycle over the MC.