Stably stratified interfacial-layer turbulence from large-eddy simulation

The structure of the interfacial layer capping the atmospheric boundary layer is not well understood. The dominant influence on turbulence within the interfacial layer is the stable stratification induced by the capping inversion. A series of 26 high-resolution large eddy simulation runs ranging from neutral, inversion-capped to free-convection cases are used to study interfacial layer turbulence. The interfacial layer is found to be similar in many aspects to a classic stable boundary layer. For example, the shapes of interfacial layer spectra and cospectra, including the locations of the spectral peaks, agree with previous observations from nocturnal PBLs. The eddy diffusivities, variances, structure-function parameters, and dissipation rates within the interfacial layer, suitably nondimensionalized using local scaling, also agree with observations from nocturnal PBLs. These results may lead to improved models of the interfacial layer and entrainment, and may also have implications for remote sensing of the interfacial layer.