Sources of anisotropy in the Reynolds stress tensor in the stable boundary layer

Abstract

AbstractData collected by 12 sonic anemometers over the Plaine Morte Glacier (Swiss Alps) during the Snow Horizontal Arrays Turbulence Study are used to investigate sources of anisotropy in the Reynolds stress tensor for stable boundary layers. A coarse‐graining approach is applied to evaluate transfers of kinetic energy across scales, and internal gravity waves (IGWs) are detected with a suitable criterion. Both approaches are combined with a classification of anisotropy based on the barycentric map of 1 min Reynolds stress tensors. A wind‐speed threshold is found that discriminates between regimes with a different dominant topology of the Reynolds stress tensor. One‐component and isotropic states are frequent for low wind speed and strong stratification, whereas two‐component axisymmetric states dominate the high wind speed regime with strong vertical shear. Results suggest that the presence of IGWs is mostly responsible for one‐component states, and additionally influences the relative amount of kinetic and potential energy in the perturbation field. To provide supporting evidence, a complementary analysis of a clean IGW detected during a field campaign in Dumosa (Australia) is presented. This case study highlights how waves contribute to drive the Reynolds stress tensor towards the one‐component limit. Cases are shown where a linear detrending procedure may be effective in filtering out waves and avoid their spurious contributions in turbulence statistics.