EAPSI:Strengthening the Weather Research and Forecasting Model for Antarctica by Assimilating GPS Radio Occultation Profiles from the 2010 Concordiasi Campaign

Sussman Jeffrey M, La Jolla CA

Investigators

Abstract

This award supports research that aims to enhance weather forecasting in Antarctica by assessing the impact of additional data observations on the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. The study will integrate GPS radio occultation data from the 2010 Concordiasi field campaign, which collected data in the stratosphere over Antarctica through a balloon-borne collection system, into the WRF model. Assimilating the new data into the WRF model may improve forecasting and understanding of Antarctic cyclones and wind speeds, along with air-sea ice interaction in the future. The research will be conducted in collaboration with Dr. Shu-Chih Yang, an expert in model evaluation and data assimilation in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at National Central University in Taiwan. In the sparsely sampled Antarctic region, this study will assess the impact of additional in situ observations, as provided by balloon borne GPS RO, on Antarctic weather forecasting. The study will take GPS radio occultation refractivity profiles from the 2010 Concordiasi campaign over Antarctica and assimilate them into the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model using one of the WRF Data Assimilation (DA) schemes. The GPS RO profiles provide additional in-situ measurements in a sparsely sampled region of the world. The project will determine the impact that these additional profiles have on WRF model forecasts, particularly in relation to cyclogenesis along the sea ice edge and winds that advect sea ice. At National Central University in Taiwan, Professor Shu-Chih Yang will assist in the data assimilation process and analysis of the model output. Her expertise will be critical for the data assimilation process and for understanding the results and behavior of the WRF model. This award under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan.