Exploring Vertical Turbulence Structure in Neutrally and Stably Stratified Flows Using the Weather Research and Forecasting–Large-Eddy Simulation (WRF–LES) Model

Following Sun et al. (J Atmos Sci 69(1):338–351, 2012), vertical variations of turbulent mixing in stably stratified and neutral environments as functions of wind speed are investigated using the large-eddy simulation capability in the Weather Research and Forecasting model. The simulations with a surface cooling rate for the stable boundary layer (SBL) and a range of geostrophic winds for both stable and neutral boundary layers are compared with observations from the Cooperative Atmosphere–Surface Exchange Study 1999 (CASES-99). To avoid the uncertainty of the subgrid scheme, the investigation focuses on the vertical domain when the ratio between the subgrid and the resolved turbulence is small. The results qualitatively capture the observed dependence of turbulence intensity on wind speed under neutral conditions; however, its vertical variation is affected by the damping layer used in absorbing undesirable numerical waves at the top of the domain as a result of relatively large neutral turbulent eddies. The simulated SBL fails to capture the observed temperature variance with wind speed and the observed transition from the SBL to the near-neutral atmosphere with increasing wind speed, although the vertical temperature profile of the simulated SBL resembles the observed profile. The study suggests that molecular thermal conduction responsible for the thermal coupling between the surface and atmosphere cannot be parameterized through the Monin–Obukhov bulk relation for turbulent heat transfer by applying the surface radiation temperature, as is common practice when modelling air–surface interactions.