Characteristics of the near-surface turbulence during a bora event

Abstract

During a bora event, the turbulence is strongly developed in the lee of the Dinaric Alps at the eastern Adriatic coast. In order to study its properties, a 3-D ultrasonic anemometer operating at 4 Hz sampling frequency was placed in the town of Senj at 13 m above ground. The strong bora case that occurred on 7 January and lasted till 11 January 2006 is analyzed here. This data set is used for evaluation of the turbulent kinetic energy, TKE, and its dissipation rate, ε. The computation of ε is performed using the inertial dissipation method. The empirical length scale parameter for this event is estimated with respect to ε and TKE. Some considerations about defining turbulent perturbations of the bora wind velocity are also pointed out.