Low-Level Jets over Southeast China: The Warm Season Climatology of the Summer of 2003

Abstract

AbstractThe southwesterly low-level jet (LLJ) over southeast China in the summer of 2003 is analyzed in this study. The analysis is based on the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Final (FNL) operational global analysis data on 1.0×1.0-degree grids at 6-h intervals. The major criteria for choosing the LLJ included the following: a maximum wind speed equal to or greater than 12.0 m s–1, a wind direction of between 180° and 270°, and the height of wind maximum at 900–700 hPa, not confined to single pressure level. The results show that the LLJs over southeast China dominate at 850 and 800 hPa. These LLJs are closely associated with the topography of this area and tend to locate regions with large terrain gradients, including the northeastern and eastern Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. Under the influence of mid-latitude westerly winds, the LLJs above 750 hPa move northward to the Yangtze-Huai River Basin. Compared to the ten-year (2000–2009) mean climate conditions, the LLJs in the warm season of ...