Impact of swell on simulations using a regional atmospheric climate model

Abstract

When long, fast swell waves travel in approximately the same direction as the wind, the surface stress is reduced compared with under wind-sea conditions. Using measurements from the Östergarnsholm site in the Baltic Sea, new expressions of the roughness length were developed for wind sea and swell. These new expressions were implemented in the RCA3 regional climate model covering Europe. A 3-year simulation and two case studies using the wavefield from the ECMWF reanalysis (ERA-40) were analysed using the improved formulations. Wind-following swell led to a significant reduction of mean wind stress and heat fluxes. The mean surface layer wind speed was redistributed horizontally and the marine boundary layer cooled and dried slightly. This cooling was most pronounced over North Sea and the Norwegian Sea (almost 0.2°C annually on average) whereas the drying was most pronounced over the Mediterranean Sea (almost 0.4 g kg-1). Somewhat less convective precipitation and low-level cloudiness over the sea areas were also indicated, in particular over the Mediterranean Sea. The impact on the atmosphere, however, is significantly locally greater in time and space. © 2009 The Authors Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Munksgaard.