Articles | Volume 6, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-3563-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Special issue:
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-3563-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
17 Dec 2013
Research article |
| 17 Dec 2013
Implementation of a 3D-Var system for atmospheric profiling data assimilation into the RAMS model: initial results
S. Federico
ISAC-CNR, UOS of Rome, Rome (RM), Italy
Related authors
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Claudio Transerici, Mario Montopoli, Cinzia Cambiotti, Francesco Manconi, Alessandro Battaglia, and Maryam Pourshamsi
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2095, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2095, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Weather and Climate Dynamics (WCD).
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The Wind Velocity Radar Nephoscope (WIVERN) mission will be the first space-based mission to provide global in-cloud wind, cloud and precipitation measurements. The mission is proposed as a candidate for the ESA Earth Explorer 11. Its data could be beneficial to several sectors, including numerical weather prediction performance enhancement. This paper aims to contribute to the last point by analyzing the impact that WIVERN would have in the case of a Tropical-like cyclone event.
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This work shows how local observations can improve precipitation forecasting for severe weather events. The improvement lasts for at least 6 h of forecast.
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This study shows the possibility to improve the weather forecast at the very short range (0–3 h) using lightning and/or radar reflectivity observations. We consider two challenging events that occurred over Italy, named Serrano and Livorno, characterized by moderate and exceptional rainfall, respectively.
The improvement given to the forecast by using the lightning and/or radar reflectivity observations is considerable. The best performance is obtained when using both data.
Monica Campanelli, Alessandra Mascitelli, Paolo Sanò, Henri Diémoz, Victor Estellés, Stefano Federico, Anna Maria Iannarelli, Francesca Fratarcangeli, Augusto Mazzoni, Eugenio Realini, Mattia Crespi, Olivier Bock, Jose A. Martínez-Lozano, and Stefano Dietrich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 81–94, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-81-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-81-2018, 2018
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The estimation of precipitable water vapour (W) content is of great interest in both meteorological and climatological studies. Sun photometers allowed the development of W automatic estimations with high temporal resolution. A new methodology, based on the hypothesis that the calibration parameters characterizing the atmospheric transmittance are dependent on vertical profiles of temperature, air pressure and moisture typical of each measurement site, has been presented providing good results.
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This study investigates the impact of using lightning data on the precipitation forecast at different forecast ranges (3–24 h). Twenty case studies, occurred over Italy in fall 2012, are selected to show the impact.
Results show the important and positive impact of using lightning data to improve the precipitation forecast. The time range, however, is very important because the performance decreases steadily and substantially with forecasting time.
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Paolo Sanò, Daniele Casella, Monica Campanelli, Jan Fokke Meirink, Ping Wang, Stefania Vergari, Henri Diémoz, and Stefano Dietrich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 2337–2352, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, 2017
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In this paper we evaluate the performance of two estimates of the global horizontal irradiance (GHI), one derived from the Meteosat Second Generation and one from a meteorological model (Regional Atmospheric Modeling System) forecast. The focus area is Italy, and the performance is evaluated for 12 pyranometers spanning a range of climate conditions, from Mediterranean maritime to Alpine.
Stefano Federico, Marco Petracca, Giulia Panegrossi, and Stefano Dietrich
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 61–76, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-61-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-61-2017, 2017
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The motivation of this study is to use lightning observations to improve the precipitation forecast at the short range (3 h). For this purpose 20 case studies, occurring in fall 2012, were analyzed using a meteorological model, whose set-up is applicable in real-time weather forecasting. Lightning observations were provided by the LINET network. Results show a systematic improvement of the 3 h precipitation forecast when lightning observations are used.
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The improvement of the Solar and Wind short-term forecasting represents a critical goal for the weather prediction community and is of great importance for a better estimation of power production from solar and wind farms.
In this work we analyze the performance of two deterministic models operational at ISAC-CNR for the prediction of short-wave irradiance and wind speed, at two experimental sites in southern Italy.
Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Stefano Federico, Claudia Roberta Calidonna, Elenio Avolio, Oxana Drofa, Tony Christian Landi, Piero Malguzzi, Andrea Buzzi, and Paolo Bonasoni
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Quality of wind prediction is of great importance since a good wind forecast allows the prediction of available wind power, improving the penetration of renewable energies into the energy market.
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L. Tiriolo, R. C. Torcasio, S. Montesanti, A. M. Sempreviva, C. R. Calidonna, C. Transerici, and S. Federico
Adv. Sci. Res., 12, 37–44, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-12-37-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-12-37-2015, 2015
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We show a study of the prediction of power production of a wind farm located in Central Italy using RAMS model for wind speed forecast.
S. Federico, E. Avolio, M. Petracca, G. Panegrossi, P. Sanò, D. Casella, and S. Dietrich
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 2933–2950, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-14-2933-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-14-2933-2014, 2014
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This paper shows the implementation of a simple model for simulating lightning into the RAMS model.
The methodology is applied to six case studies that occurred in central Italy and the results are verified against LINET observations.
Advantages and weaknesses of the methodology are discussed.
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Claudio Transerici, Mario Montopoli, Cinzia Cambiotti, Francesco Manconi, Alessandro Battaglia, and Maryam Pourshamsi
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2095, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2095, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Weather and Climate Dynamics (WCD).
Short summary
Short summary
The Wind Velocity Radar Nephoscope (WIVERN) mission will be the first space-based mission to provide global in-cloud wind, cloud and precipitation measurements. The mission is proposed as a candidate for the ESA Earth Explorer 11. Its data could be beneficial to several sectors, including numerical weather prediction performance enhancement. This paper aims to contribute to the last point by analyzing the impact that WIVERN would have in the case of a Tropical-like cyclone event.
Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Alessandra Mascitelli, Eugenio Realini, Stefano Barindelli, Giulio Tagliaferro, Silvia Puca, Stefano Dietrich, and Stefano Federico
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3319–3336, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-3319-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-3319-2023, 2023
Short summary
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This work shows how local observations can improve precipitation forecasting for severe weather events. The improvement lasts for at least 6 h of forecast.
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Elenio Avolio, Olivier Caumont, Mario Montopoli, Luca Baldini, Gianfranco Vulpiani, and Stefano Dietrich
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 1839–1864, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-19-1839-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-19-1839-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This study shows the possibility to improve the weather forecast at the very short range (0–3 h) using lightning and/or radar reflectivity observations. We consider two challenging events that occurred over Italy, named Serrano and Livorno, characterized by moderate and exceptional rainfall, respectively.
The improvement given to the forecast by using the lightning and/or radar reflectivity observations is considerable. The best performance is obtained when using both data.
Monica Campanelli, Alessandra Mascitelli, Paolo Sanò, Henri Diémoz, Victor Estellés, Stefano Federico, Anna Maria Iannarelli, Francesca Fratarcangeli, Augusto Mazzoni, Eugenio Realini, Mattia Crespi, Olivier Bock, Jose A. Martínez-Lozano, and Stefano Dietrich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 81–94, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-81-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-81-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
The estimation of precipitable water vapour (W) content is of great interest in both meteorological and climatological studies. Sun photometers allowed the development of W automatic estimations with high temporal resolution. A new methodology, based on the hypothesis that the calibration parameters characterizing the atmospheric transmittance are dependent on vertical profiles of temperature, air pressure and moisture typical of each measurement site, has been presented providing good results.
Stefano Federico, Marco Petracca, Giulia Panegrossi, Claudio Transerici, and Stefano Dietrich
Adv. Sci. Res., 14, 187–194, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-14-187-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-14-187-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
This study investigates the impact of using lightning data on the precipitation forecast at different forecast ranges (3–24 h). Twenty case studies, occurred over Italy in fall 2012, are selected to show the impact.
Results show the important and positive impact of using lightning data to improve the precipitation forecast. The time range, however, is very important because the performance decreases steadily and substantially with forecasting time.
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Paolo Sanò, Daniele Casella, Monica Campanelli, Jan Fokke Meirink, Ping Wang, Stefania Vergari, Henri Diémoz, and Stefano Dietrich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 2337–2352, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
In this paper we evaluate the performance of two estimates of the global horizontal irradiance (GHI), one derived from the Meteosat Second Generation and one from a meteorological model (Regional Atmospheric Modeling System) forecast. The focus area is Italy, and the performance is evaluated for 12 pyranometers spanning a range of climate conditions, from Mediterranean maritime to Alpine.
Stefano Federico, Marco Petracca, Giulia Panegrossi, and Stefano Dietrich
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 61–76, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-61-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-61-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The motivation of this study is to use lightning observations to improve the precipitation forecast at the short range (3 h). For this purpose 20 case studies, occurring in fall 2012, were analyzed using a meteorological model, whose set-up is applicable in real-time weather forecasting. Lightning observations were provided by the LINET network. Results show a systematic improvement of the 3 h precipitation forecast when lightning observations are used.
Elenio Avolio, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Teresa Lo Feudo, Claudia Roberta Calidonna, Daniele Contini, and Stefano Federico
Adv. Sci. Res., 13, 69–73, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-13-69-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-13-69-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
The improvement of the Solar and Wind short-term forecasting represents a critical goal for the weather prediction community and is of great importance for a better estimation of power production from solar and wind farms.
In this work we analyze the performance of two deterministic models operational at ISAC-CNR for the prediction of short-wave irradiance and wind speed, at two experimental sites in southern Italy.
Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Stefano Federico, Claudia Roberta Calidonna, Elenio Avolio, Oxana Drofa, Tony Christian Landi, Piero Malguzzi, Andrea Buzzi, and Paolo Bonasoni
Ann. Geophys., 34, 347–356, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-347-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-347-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Quality of wind prediction is of great importance since a good wind forecast allows the prediction of available wind power, improving the penetration of renewable energies into the energy market.
This work shows the application of a technique to improve wind forecasting. The study area is southern Italy.
L. Tiriolo, R. C. Torcasio, S. Montesanti, A. M. Sempreviva, C. R. Calidonna, C. Transerici, and S. Federico
Adv. Sci. Res., 12, 37–44, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-12-37-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/asr-12-37-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
We show a study of the prediction of power production of a wind farm located in Central Italy using RAMS model for wind speed forecast.
S. Federico, E. Avolio, M. Petracca, G. Panegrossi, P. Sanò, D. Casella, and S. Dietrich
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 2933–2950, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-14-2933-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-14-2933-2014, 2014
Short summary
Short summary
This paper shows the implementation of a simple model for simulating lightning into the RAMS model.
The methodology is applied to six case studies that occurred in central Italy and the results are verified against LINET observations.
Advantages and weaknesses of the methodology are discussed.
Related subject area
Subject: Others (Wind, Precipitation, Temperature, etc.) | Technique: In Situ Measurement | Topic: Data Processing and Information Retrieval
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Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2197–2207, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2197-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2197-2023, 2023
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In this paper, we used a random forest model to fill the observation gaps of the fluxes measured during 2015–2019. We found that the net radiation was the most important input variable. And we justified the reliability of the model. Further, it was revealed that the model performed better after relative humidity was removed from the input. Lastly, we compared the results of the model with those of three other machine learning models, and we found that the model outperformed all of them.
Jinwook Lee, Jongyun Byun, Jongjin Baik, Changhyun Jun, and Hyeon-Joon Kim
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 707–725, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-707-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-707-2023, 2023
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Our study addresses raindrop size distribution and rain rate by extracting rain streaks using a k-nearest-neighbor-based algorithm, estimating rainfall intensity using raindrop size distribution based on physical optics analysis, and verifying the estimated raindrop size distribution using a disdrometer. Experimentation demonstrated the possibility of estimating an image-based raindrop size distribution and rain rate obtained based on such low-cost equipment in dark conditions.
Zolal Ayazpour, Shiqi Tao, Dan Li, Amy Jo Scarino, Ralph E. Kuehn, and Kang Sun
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 563–580, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-563-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-563-2023, 2023
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Accurate knowledge of the planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) is essential to study air pollution. However, PBLH observations are sparse in space and time, and PBLHs used in atmospheric models are often inaccurate. Using PBLH observations from the Aircraft Meteorological DAta Relay (AMDAR), we present a machine learning framework to produce a spatially complete PBLH product over the contiguous US that shows a better agreement with reference PBLH observations than commonly used PBLH products.
Richard Wilson, Clara Pitois, Aurélien Podglajen, Albert Hertzog, Milena Corcos, and Riwal Plougonven
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 311–330, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-311-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-311-2023, 2023
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Strateole-2 is an French–US initiative designed to study atmospheric events in the tropical upper troposphere–lower stratosphere. In this work, data from several superpressure balloons, capable of staying aloft at an altitude of 18–20 km for over 3 months, were used. The present article describes methods to detect the occurrence of atmospheric turbulence – one efficient process impacting the properties of the atmosphere composition via stirring and mixing.
Norbert Pirk, Kristoffer Aalstad, Sebastian Westermann, Astrid Vatne, Alouette van Hove, Lena Merete Tallaksen, Massimo Cassiani, and Gabriel Katul
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 7293–7314, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7293-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7293-2022, 2022
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In this study, we show how sparse and noisy drone measurements can be combined with an ensemble of turbulence-resolving wind simulations to estimate uncertainty-aware surface energy exchange. We demonstrate the feasibility of this drone data assimilation framework in a series of synthetic and real-world experiments. This new framework can, in future, be applied to estimate energy and gas exchange in heterogeneous landscapes more representatively than conventional methods.
Basivi Radhakrishna
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6705–6722, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6705-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6705-2022, 2022
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Raindrop size distributions (DSDs) measured by various types of disdrometers are different in the same environmental conditions. The mass-weighted mean diameter (Dm) measured from JWD is larger, and ZDR is smaller than LPM and PARSIVEL due to the resonance effect at X-band frequency. The effect of wind on DSD measured by various disdrometers is not uniform in different regions of a tropical cyclone.
Katarzyna Ośródka, Irena Otop, and Jan Szturc
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5581–5597, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5581-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5581-2022, 2022
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The quality control of sub-hourly rain gauge data is a challenging task due to the high variability and low spatial consistency of the data. We developed an innovative approach to the quality control of telemetric rain gauge data focused on assessing the reliability of individual observations. Our scheme employs weather radar data to detect erroneous rain gauge measurements and to assess the data reliability. The scheme is used operationally by the Polish meteorological and hydrological service.
Gina Jozef, John Cassano, Sandro Dahlke, and Gijs de Boer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4001–4022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4001-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4001-2022, 2022
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During the MOSAiC expedition, meteorological conditions over the lowest 1 km of the atmosphere were sampled with the DataHawk2 uncrewed aircraft system. These data were used to identify the best method for atmospheric boundary layer height detection by comparing visually identified subjective boundary layer height to that identified by several objective automated detection methods. The results show a bulk Richardson number-based approach gives the best estimate of boundary layer height.
Antonio R. Segales, Phillip B. Chilson, and Jorge L. Salazar-Cerreño
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2607–2621, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2607-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2607-2022, 2022
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The mitigation of undesired contamination, sensor characterization, and signal conditioning and restoration is crucial to improve the reliability of the weather unmanned aerial system (UAS) deliverables. This study presents an overview of the general considerations and procedures to compensate for slow sensor response and other sources of error for temperature and humidity measurements collected using a UAS.
Soo-Hyun Kim, Jeonghoe Kim, Jung-Hoon Kim, and Hye-Yeong Chun
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2277–2298, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2277-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2277-2022, 2022
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The cube root of the energy dissipation rate (EDR), as a standard reporting metric of atmospheric turbulence, is estimated using 1 Hz commercial quick access recorder data from Korean-based national air carriers with two different types of aircraft. Various EDRs are estimated using zonal, meridional, and derived vertical wind components and the derived equivalent vertical gust. Characteristics of the observed EDR estimates using 1 Hz flight data are examined to observe strong turbulence cases.
Francesca M. Lappin, Tyler M. Bell, Elizabeth A. Pillar-Little, and Phillip B. Chilson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1185–1200, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1185-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1185-2022, 2022
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This study evaluates how a classically defined variable, air parcel buoyancy, can be used to interpret transitions in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL). To capture the high-resolution variations, remotely piloted aircraft systems are used to collect data in two field campaigns. This paper finds that buoyancy has distinct evolutions prior to low-level jet and convective initiation cases. Additionally, buoyancy mixes well to act as an ABL height indicator comparable to other methods.
Shaohui Zhou, Yuanjian Yang, Zhiqiu Gao, Xingya Xi, Zexia Duan, and Yubin Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 757–773, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-757-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-757-2022, 2022
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Our research has determined the possible relationship between Weibull natural wind mesoscale parameter c and shape factor k with height under the conditions of a desert steppe terrain in northern China, which has great potential in wind power generation. We have gained an enhanced understanding of the seasonal changes in the surface roughness of the desert grassland and the changes in the incoming wind direction.
Xinhua Zhou, Tian Gao, Eugene S. Takle, Xiaojie Zhen, Andrew E. Suyker, Tala Awada, Jane Okalebo, and Jiaojun Zhu
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 95–115, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-95-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-95-2022, 2022
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Air temperature from sonic temperature and air moisture has been used without an exact equation. We present an exact equation of such air temperature for closed-path eddy-covariance flux measurements. Air temperature from this equation is equivalent to sonic temperature in its accuracy and frequency response. It is a choice for advanced flux topics because, with it, thermodynamic variables in the flux measurements can be temporally synchronized and spatially matched at measurement scales.
Haoyu Jiang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1–9, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1-2022, 2022
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Sea surface wind and waves are important ocean parameters that can be continuously observed by meteorological buoys. Meteorological buoys are sparse in the ocean due to their high cost of deployment and maintenance. In contrast, low-cost compact wave buoys are suited for deployment in large numbers. Although wave buoys are not designed for wind measurement, we found that deep learning can estimate wind from wave measurements accurately, making wave buoys a good-quality data source for sea wind.
Matthias Mauder, Andreas Ibrom, Luise Wanner, Frederik De Roo, Peter Brugger, Ralf Kiese, and Kim Pilegaard
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7835–7850, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7835-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7835-2021, 2021
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Turbulent flux measurements suffer from a general systematic underestimation. One reason for this bias is non-local transport by large-scale circulations. A recently developed model for this additional transport of sensible and latent energy is evaluated for three different test sites. Different options on how to apply this correction are presented, and the results are evaluated against independent measurements.
Maryam Ilyas, Douglas Nychka, Chris Brierley, and Serge Guillas
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7103–7121, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7103-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7103-2021, 2021
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Instrumental temperature records are fundamental to climate science. There are spatial gaps in the distribution of these measurements across the globe. This lack of spatial coverage introduces coverage error. In this research, a methodology is developed and used to quantify the coverage errors. It results in a data product that, for the first time, provides a full description of both the spatial coverage uncertainties along with the uncertainties in the modeling of these spatial gaps.
Jussi Leinonen, Jacopo Grazioli, and Alexis Berne
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6851–6866, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6851-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6851-2021, 2021
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Measuring the shape, size and mass of a large number of snowflakes is a challenging task; it is hard to achieve in an automatic and instrumented manner. We present a method to retrieve these properties of individual snowflakes using as input a triplet of images/pictures automatically collected by a multi-angle snowflake camera (MASC) instrument. Our method, based on machine learning, is trained on artificially generated snowflakes and evaluated on 3D-printed snowflake replicas.
Longjiang Li, Suqin Wu, Kefei Zhang, Xiaoming Wang, Wang Li, Zhen Shen, Dantong Zhu, Qimin He, and Moufeng Wan
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6379–6394, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6379-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6379-2021, 2021
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The zenith hydrostatic delay (ZHD) derived from blind models are of low accuracy, especially in mid- and high-latitude regions. To address this issue, the ratio of the ZHD to zenith total delay (ZTD) is firstly investigated; then, based on the relationship between the ZHD and ZTD, a new ZHD model was developed using the back propagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN) method which took the ZTD as an input variable. The model outperforms blind models.
Grant W. Petty
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1959–1976, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1959-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1959-2021, 2021
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Aircraft measurements of turbulent fluxes of matter and energy are important in field investigations of the interaction of the Earth's surface and the atmosphere. Because these measurements are of randomly fluctuating quantities, averages must be taken over longer flight tracks to reduce uncertainty. This paper investigates the relationship between track length and measurement error using a computer model simulation of a marine environment and compares the results with published theory.
Yadong Wang, Lin Tang, Pao-Liang Chang, and Yu-Shuang Tang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 185–197, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-185-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-185-2021, 2021
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The motivation of this work is to develop a precipitation separation approach that can be implemented on those radars with fast scanning schemes. In these schemes, the higher tilt radar data are not available, which poses a challenge for the traditional approaches. This approach uses artificial intelligence, which integrates polarimetric radar variables. The quantitative precipitation estimation will benefit from the output of this algorithm.
Loiy Al-Ghussain and Sean C. C. Bailey
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 173–184, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-173-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-173-2021, 2021
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Unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with multi-hole probes are an effective approach to measure the wind vector with high spatial and temporal resolution. However, the aircraft motion must be removed from the measured signal first, a process often introducing bias due to small errors in the relative orientation of coordinates. We present an approach that has successfully been applied in post-processing, which was found to minimize the influence of aircraft motion on wind measurements.
Alessandro Fassò, Michael Sommer, and Christoph von Rohden
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6445–6458, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6445-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6445-2020, 2020
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Modern radiosonde balloons fly from ground level up to the lower stratosphere and take temperature measurements. What is the uncertainty of interpolated values in the resulting atmospheric temperature profiles? To answer this question, we introduce a general statistical–mathematical model for the computation of interpolation uncertainty. Analysing more than 51 million measurements, we provide some understanding of the consequences of filling missing data with interpolated ones.
Jussi Leinonen and Alexis Berne
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2949–2964, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2949-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2949-2020, 2020
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The appearance of snowflakes provides a signature of the atmospheric processes that created them. To get this information from large numbers of snowflake images, automated analysis using computer image recognition is needed. In this work, we use a neural network that learns the structure of the snowflake images to divide a snowflake dataset into classes corresponding to different sizes and structures. Unlike with most comparable methods, only minimal input from a human expert is needed.
Amber Ross, Craig D. Smith, and Alan Barr
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2979–2994, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2979-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2979-2020, 2020
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The raw data derived from most automated accumulating precipitation gauges often suffer from non-precipitation-related fluctuations in the measurement of the gauge bucket weights from which the precipitation amount is determined. This noise can be caused by electrical interference, mechanical noise, and evaporation. This paper presents an automated filtering technique that builds on the principle of iteratively balancing noise to produce a clean precipitation time series.
Soo-Hyun Kim, Hye-Yeong Chun, Jung-Hoon Kim, Robert D. Sharman, and Matt Strahan
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1373–1385, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1373-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1373-2020, 2020
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We retrieve the eddy dissipation rate (EDR) from the derived equivalent vertical gust included in the Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay data for more reliable and consistent observations of aviation turbulence globally with the single preferred EDR metric. We convert the DEVG to the EDR using two methods (lognormal mapping scheme and best-fit curve between EDR and DEVG), and the DEVG-derived EDRs are evaluated against in situ EDR data reported by US-operated carriers.
Nicholas Hamilton
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1019–1032, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1019-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1019-2020, 2020
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The identification of atmospheric conditions within a multivariable atmospheric data set is an important step in validating emerging and existing models used to simulate wind plant flows and operational strategies. The total variation approach developed here offers a method founded in tested mathematical metrics and can be used to identify and characterize periods corresponding to quiescent conditions or specific events of interest for study or wind energy development.
Dafina Kikaj, Janja Vaupotič, and Scott D. Chambers
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 4455–4477, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4455-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4455-2019, 2019
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A new method was developed to identify persistent temperature inversion events in a subalpine basin using a radon-based method (RBM). By comparing with an existing pseudo-vertical temperature gradient method, the RBM was shown to be more reliable and seasonally independent. The RBM has the potential to increase the understanding of meteorological controls on air pollution episodes in complex terrain beyond the capability of contemporary atmospheric stability classification tools.
Jens Faber, Michael Gerding, Andreas Schneider, Andreas Dörnbrack, Henrike Wilms, Johannes Wagner, and Franz-Josef Lübken
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 4191–4210, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4191-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4191-2019, 2019
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Atmospheric measurements on rising balloons can be compromised by the balloon's wake. The aim of this study is to provide a tool for assessing the likelihood of encountering the balloon's wake at the position of the gondola. This includes an uncertainty analysis of the calculation and a retrieval of vertical winds. We find an average wake encounter probability of 28 % for a standard radiosonde. Additionally, we evaluate the influence of wake from smaller objects on turbulence measurements.
Maosi Chen, Zhibin Sun, John M. Davis, Yan-An Liu, Chelsea A. Corr, and Wei Gao
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 935–953, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-935-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-935-2019, 2019
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Combining a new dynamic uncertainty estimation method with Gaussian process regression (GP), we provide a generic and robust solution to estimate the underlying mean and uncertainty functions of time series with variable mean, noise, sampling density, and length of gaps. The GP solution was applied and validated on three UV-MFRSR Vo time series at three ground sites with improved accuracy of the smoothed time series in terms of aerosol optical depth compared with two other smoothing methods.
Christoph Schlager, Gottfried Kirchengast, and Juergen Fuchsberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 5607–5627, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-5607-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-5607-2018, 2018
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In this work we further developed and evaluated an operational weather diagnostic application, the WegenerNet Wind Product Generator (WPG), and applied it to the WegenerNet Johnsbachtal (JBT), a dense meteorological station network located in a mountainous Alpine region. The WPG automatically generates gridded high-resolution wind fields in near-real time with a temporal resolution of 30 min and a spatial resolution of 100 m x 100 m.
Kaisa Lakkala, Antti Arola, Julian Gröbner, Sergio Fabian León-Luis, Alberto Redondas, Stelios Kazadzis, Tomi Karppinen, Juha Matti Karhu, Luca Egli, Anu Heikkilä, Tapani Koskela, Antonio Serrano, and José Manuel Vilaplana
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 5167–5180, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-5167-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-5167-2018, 2018
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The performance of the cosine error correction method for correcting spectral UV measurements of the Brewer spectroradiometer was studied. The correction depends on the sky radiation distribution, which can change during one spectral scan. The results showed that the correction varied between 4 and 14 %, and that the relative differences between the reference and the Brewer diminished by 10 %. The method is applicable to other instruments as long as the required input parameters are available.
Jason Kelley and Chad Higgins
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 2151–2158, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2151-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2151-2018, 2018
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Measuring fluxes of energy and trace gases using the surface renewal (SR) method can be economical and robust, but it requires computationally intensive calculations. Several new algorithms were written to perform the required calculations more efficiently and rapidly, and were tested with field data and computationally rigorous SR methods. These efficient algorithms facilitate expanded use of SR in atmospheric experiments, for applied monitoring, and in novel field implementations.
Viswanathan Bringi, Merhala Thurai, and Darrel Baumgardner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 1377–1384, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-1377-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-1377-2018, 2018
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Raindrop fall velocities are important for rain rate estimation, soil erosion studies and in numerical modelling of rain formation in clouds. The assumption that the fall velocity is uniquely related to drop size is made inherently based on laboratory measurements under still air conditions from nearly 68 years ago. There have been very few measurements of drop fall speeds in natural rain under both still and turbulent wind conditions. We report on fall speed measurements in natural rain shafts.
Marta Wacławczyk, Yong-Feng Ma, Jacek M. Kopeć, and Szymon P. Malinowski
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 4573–4585, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-4573-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-4573-2017, 2017
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We propose two novel methods to estimate turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate applicable to airborne measurements. In this way we increase robustness of the dissipation rate retrieval and extend its applicability to a wider range of data sets. The new approaches relate the predicted form of the dissipation spectrum to the mean of zero crossings of the measured velocity fluctuations. The methods are easy to implement numerically, and estimates remain unaffected by certain measurement errors.
Sabine Wüst, Verena Wendt, Ricarda Linz, and Michael Bittner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 3453–3462, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3453-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-3453-2017, 2017
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Cubic splines with equidistant spline sampling points are a common method in atmospheric science for the approximation of background conditions by means of filtering superimposed fluctuations from a data series. However, splines can generate considerable artificial oscillations in the background and the residuals. We introduce a repeating spline approach which is able to significantly reduce this phenomenon and to apply it to TIMED-SABER vertical temperature profiles from 2010 to 2014.
Mohamed Djallel Dilmi, Cécile Mallet, Laurent Barthes, and Aymeric Chazottes
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1557–1574, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1557-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1557-2017, 2017
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The concept of a rain event is used to obtain a parsimonious characterisation of rain events using a minimal subset of variables at macrophysical scale. A classification in five classes is obtained in a unsupervised way from this subset. Relationships between these classes of microphysical parameters of precipitation are highlighted. There are several implications especially for remote sensing in the context of weather radar applications and quantitative precipitation estimation.
Christophe Praz, Yves-Alain Roulet, and Alexis Berne
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1335–1357, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1335-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1335-2017, 2017
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The Multi-Angle Snowflake Camera (MASC) provides high-resolution pictures of individual falling snowflakes and ice crystals. A method is proposed to automatically classify these pictures into six classes of snowflakes as well to estimate the degree of riming and to detect whether or not the particles are melting. Multinomial logistic regression is used with a manually classified
reference set. The evaluation demonstrates the good and reliable performance of the proposed technique.
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