Turbulent Transfer Coefficients and Calculation of Air Temperature inside Tall Grass Canopies in Land–Atmosphere Schemes for Environmental Modeling

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Abstract A method for estimating profiles of turbulent transfer coefficients inside a vegetation canopy and their use in calculating the air temperature inside tall grass canopies in land surface schemes for environmental modeling is presented. The proposed method, based on K theory, is assessed using data measured in a maize canopy. The air temperature inside the canopy is determined diagnostically by a method based on detailed consideration of 1) calculations of turbulent fluxes, 2) the shape of the wind and turbulent transfer coefficient profiles, and 3) calculation of the aerodynamic resistances inside tall grass canopies. An expression for calculating the turbulent transfer coefficient inside sparse tall grass canopies is also suggested, including modification of the corresponding equation for the wind profile inside the canopy. The proposed calculations of K-theory parameters are tested using the Land–Air Parameterization Scheme (LAPS). Model outputs of air temperature inside the canopy for 8–17 July 2002 are compared with micrometeorological measurements inside a sunflower field at the Rimski Sancevi experimental site (Serbia). To demonstrate how changes in the specification of canopy density affect the simulation of air temperature inside tall grass canopies and, thus, alter the growth of PBL height, numerical experiments are performed with LAPS coupled with a one-dimensional PBL model over a sunflower field. To examine how the turbulent transfer coefficient inside tall grass canopies over a large domain represents the influence of the underlying surface on the air layer above, sensitivity tests are performed using a coupled system consisting of the NCEP Nonhydrostatic Mesoscale Model and LAPS.