Correcting Fast-Mode Pressure Errors in Storm-Scale Ensemble Kalman Filter Analyses

A typical storm-scale ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) analysis/forecast system is shown to introduce imbalances into the ensemble posteriors that generate acoustic waves in subsequent integrations. When the EnKF is used to research storm-scale dynamics, the resulting spurious pressure oscillations are...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Corey K. Potvin, Louis J. Wicker
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2013-01-01
Series:Advances in Meteorology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/624931
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A typical storm-scale ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) analysis/forecast system is shown to introduce imbalances into the ensemble posteriors that generate acoustic waves in subsequent integrations. When the EnKF is used to research storm-scale dynamics, the resulting spurious pressure oscillations are large enough to impact investigation of processes driven by nonhydrostatic pressure gradient forces. Fortunately, thermodynamic retrieval techniques traditionally applied to dual-Doppler wind analyses can be adapted to diagnose the balanced portion of an EnKF pressure analysis, thereby eliminating the fast-mode pressure oscillations. The efficacy of this approach is demonstrated using a high-resolution supercell thunderstorm simulation as well as EnKF analyses of a simulated and a real supercell.
ISSN:1687-9309
1687-9317