Assessment of wind datasets on the tropical cyclones’ event (case study: Gonu tropical cyclone)

Even though the occurrence rate of tropical cyclones (TCs) is almost steady as reported in earlier studies, however, the intensity of TCs has shown a significant increase due to global warming. Gonu (2007) and Phet (2010) are examples of TCs, which affected the southern coasts of Iran. The first step in evaluating the effects of TC is the accuracy as well as the correctness of the wind field. For this purpose, the WRF and parametric models have been implemented for the wind field simulation, in the Makran coasts during the Gonu TC. QuikSCAT satellite data and coastal synoptic stations data have been used to evaluate the wind field results. The results indicated that the WRF model can successfully forecast the cyclone’s path and its outputs can be employed to forecast such weather hazards. Comparing the wind field results with satellite data, highlights the accuracy of the WRF model in the coastal areas. Modeling the wind field asymmetry due to the cyclone confinement and more realistic wind distribution, distinguishes the results of WRF model from other studied counterparts. In addition, a comparison of the wind field results with the synoptic data indicates that the WRF model results meet very good accuracy. Furthermore, the study of cyclone damage potential (CDP) index in the Gulf of Oman northern coasts shows that the WRF outcomes have a very high accuracy. This study highlights the capability of the ARW model in simulating the wind field, especially on the southern and southeastern coasts of Iran, which are affected by TCs.