Interaction of Orographic Disturbance with Front

Abstract

The interaction of orographic disturbance with front is investigated with a nonhydrostatic fully compressible mesoscale model (ARPS). It is shown that the front is dominated mainly by the orographic disturbance if the front is weak. Firstly, because the stratified airstream is forced to flow along the topographic surface, the topographic surface almost coincides with the lowest isentrope for the barotropic flow. The potential temperature gradients are opposite on upwind slope and downwind slope. As the cold front moves across the mountain, its intensity decreases on the upwind side and increases on the downwind side due to the thermal superposition. Conversely, the warm front is strengthened on the upwind slope and weakened on the downwind slope. This is the thermal superposition effect. Secondly, the mountain-forced circulation and orographic waves, which depend on the shape and size of topography and characteristics of airflow, contribute to frontogenesis and / or frontolysis. This is referred as dynamical action. For the mesoscale mountain ridge of gentle slope, the dynamical action weakens the cold front on the upwind slope, and strengthens the cold front on the lee side. While for the mesoscale mountain of steep slope, the dynamical effect weakens the cold front on the upwind side and strengthens the cold front on the mountain top, the frontal intensity is decreased when front moves downslope rapidly. As front moves into the convergent zone near the mountain base, its intensity is enhanced severely. If the front is intensive, there is strong interaction between the orographic disturbance and the front. The cold front dramatically increases downslope wind and lee side gravity wave activity. And these in turn act upon the frontal intensity and frontal structure. For the baroclinic basic flow, the southerly warm advection on the upwind side makes the cold front less frontolysis; the northerly on the lee side violently intensifies the clod front.