Dynamic LES modeling of a diurnal cycle

Abstract

The diurnally varying atmospheric boundary layer observed during the Wangara (Australia) case study is simulated using the recently proposed locally averaged scale-dependent dynamic subgrid-scale (SGS) model. This tuning-free SGS model enables one to dynamically compute the Smagorinsky coefficient and the subgrid-scale Prandtl number based on the local dynamics of the resolved velocity and temperature fields. It is shown that this SGS-model-based large-eddy simulation (LES) has the ability to faithfully reproduce the characteristics of observed atmospheric boundary layers even with relatively coarse resolutions. In particular, the development, magnitude, and location of an observed nocturnal low-level jet are depicted quite well. Some well-established empirical formulations (e.g., mixed layer scaling, spectral scaling) are recovered with good accuracy by this SGS parameterization. The application of this new-generation dynamic SGS modeling approach is also briefly delineated to address several practical wind-energy-related issues. © 2008 American Meteorological Society.