Wave and turbulence structure in a shallow baroclinic convective boundary layer and overlying inversion.

Abstract

Data from the Boulder Atmospheric Observatory (BAO) are used to investigate the wave and turbulence structure of the convective atmospheric mixed layer and the overlying inversion. Three cases are discussed, one in considerable detail, in which the depth of the mixed layer is below the top of the 300 m tower at the BAO and is nearly steady state for several hours. Velocity and temperature variances and spectra, coherences between vertical velocity and temperature, and vertical velocities at different levels on the tower are used to show that although the mixed-layer behavior is for the most part similar to that found in previous studies. -from Authors