The Ross Island Meteorology Experiment

1. The Ross Island Meteorology Experiment (RIME): Antarctic Atmospheric Science in the 21st Century David Bromwich Polar Meteorology Group Byrd Polar Research CenterThe Ohio State UniversityColumbus, Ohio

2. Topics Covered: • Introduction to Antarctica • Motivation for RIME • Climate Interactions Emphasizing the Ross Sea Sector • Approach • Process-based Studies • Modeling Research • RIME Activities and Timelines • Proposed HIAPER Aircraft Program • Conclusions

3. Northern Hemisphere Southern Hemisphere Palmer Introduction to Antarctica: Location and Size South Pole McMurdo

4. Highest Coldest Driest Windiest Antarctic Ice Sheet Stores the Equivalent of ~65 m (215 ft) of Global Sea Level. Introduction to Antarctica - continued …continent on Earth

5. McMurdo Introduction to Antarctica: Topography

6. Introduction to Antarctica: Annual Mean Surface Temperature

7. Introduction to Antarctica: Annual Accumulation

8. Introduction to Antarctica: Mean Winds

9. Introduction to Antarctica: Cyclonic Activity

10. Introduction to Antarctica: The Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf

11. Introduction to Antarctica: The Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf

12. Introduction to Antarctica: McMurdo Station Phote courtesy BPRC Figure 1. McMurdo Station, Antarctica

13. Motivation for RIME • We have good knowledge of the basic aspects of many processes, but detailed understanding is lacking. This is required for understanding the role of Antarctica in the global climate system, for example via sensitivity studies with global climate models. One needs to get the cloud-radiation interactions correct for this. • Also logistical activities in Antarctica (especially USAP) are increasingly relying on numerical weather forecasts to allow expansion to year-round operations. E.g., rescue of Dr. Shemenski from South Pole in April 2001 and the rescue of the crew and passengers from the Magdalena Oldendorff in July 2002.

14. Motivation for RIME • Antarctica is unique in that it represents the cold, dry, and pristine limits to the troposphere. • The study area is representative of the processes that take place in all parts of Antarctica. • This area is where strong interactions with the global climate system take place. More details to follow. • Ease of collaboration with Italy, France, and New Zealand. RIME planning workshop in Bologna, Italy during July 2002. • Logistics available for a field program. • Timescales will be decided by the dominant atmospheric circulation modes. • Most significant atmospheric modeling uncertainties occur at high latitudes, particularly the planetary boundary layer and the atmospheric hydrologic cycle.

15. Climate Interactions Emphasizing the Ross Sea Sector • Teleconnections with middle and low latitudes • El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) impacts • Hemispheric mass exchange

16. Teleconnections Hines and Bromwich 2002 (in press)

17. ENSO Impacts Polar MM5 Potential Temperature Anomaly (oK) MAM 1997 (El Nino) MAM 1999 (La Nina) • Key Points: • Warmer than normal temperatures over West Antarctica during El Nino • Cooler than normal temperatures over West Antarctica during La Nina • Marked Differences and very tight gradients • Dipole observed Bromwich et al 2003 (in preparation)

18. Hemispheric Mass Exchange Parish and Bromwich (1998)

19. Approach: • Need regionalfocus to help to study processes and for forecasting purposes. This allows the collaboration with our friends from Italy and France. Aircraft, regional AWS, satellite products, wind profilers, enhanced upper air program, etc. are needed. • Need a local focus. Parameterization testing and development. Primarily must be concentrated in a limited area to get enough equipment in place. Also can do testing and development of satellite products that are required for the process-based studies and forecasting purposes. Ground-based equipment, aircraft measurements, plus???.

20. Approach: Process-Based Studies Katabatic Winds Mesoscale Cyclogenesis Barrier Winds

21. Katabatic Winds Carrasco and Bromwich (1993) Katabatic wind surge blowing across the Ross Ice Shelf. McMurdo Station, Ross Island

22. Mesoscale Cyclones Carrasco et al. (2003; in press)

23. Barrier Winds O’Connor et al. (1994) Bromwich et al. (2003; in press)

24. Approach: Modeling Research Parameterization Improvements Cloud-Radiation Interaction Planetary Boundary Layer Parameterization Moist Processes Forecast Improvements Effective Assimilation of Conventional and Novel Data Sources (e.g., AWS, Satellite Imagery, GPS/Met. Data, etc…) Forecast Sensitivity Studies: optimize the observational system

25. Cloud-Radiation Interaction Cassano et al. (2001)

26. PBL Parameterization Bromwich et al. (2001)

27. RIME Activities and Timelines– Your active participation is solicited! • Pre-RIME (June 2003-June 2005). This is underway • RIME Proposals due at NSF-OPP June 2003 and possibly June 2004 as well • RIME Phase I (Field Study; December 2005-March 2006) • RIME Analysis Phase (March 2006-September 2007) • RIME Phase II (Field Study; September-December 2007) • RIME Final Analysis Phase (January 2008-June 2010)

28. Pre-RIME Activities • Process Investigations • Model Evaluation and Validation • Model Initialization and Data Assimilation • AWS Deployments • Satellite Algorithm Development • Early Instrument Development

29. RIME Activities • Surface energy budget • Planetary boundary layer dynamics • Radiation and cloud microphysics studies • Regional airborne observing for climate interactions and synoptic scale processes • Local airborne observing for mesoscale atmospheric dynamics • Development and testing of satellite products • Improvements to global and regional atmospheric models

30. HIAPER: An exciting opportunity for studies of Antarctic Meteorology and Climatology • Unique Aspects: • Can operate in Antarctica in late winter / early spring when other research aircraft cannot. • Range – can fly out of New Zealand, perform Antarctic studies, and return home. (max range 12,000 km; 40 S – 80 S =4,400 km) • Can operate at high (max 51,000 ft, 100 hPa) and low altitudes • Sophisticated instrumentation. • Anticipated Usage: • 2nd RIME Field Season (Sep-Dec 2007). • Possible Investigation Topics: • Intense cyclonic forcing – interactions with sub-polar latitudes and the stratosphere. • Circumpolar Vortex dynamics. • Local Antarctic processes and circulations – Polar Direct Cell. • Study Applications: • Model validation. • Satellite algorithm validation.

31. Maximum Range 12,046 km • Maximum Payload 2,948 kg • Payload with Maximum Fuel 726 kg • Maximum Cruise Altitude 15.5 km • Cabin Length 15.3 m • Cabin Width 2.2 m • Cabin Height 1.9 m NCAR HIAPER Gulfstream V

32. Conclusions: • Wide atmospheric science community participation is essential to the success of RIME. • Little detailed study has been performed in the data-sparse Antarctic region and there are tremendous possibilities for ground-breaking discoveries. • Participation of other funding agencies (e.g., NASA, NOAA, DOE) is being explored because of the scope of the proposed work. • RIME project website: • http://www-bprc.mps.ohio-state.edu/PolarMet