Flow and Particles Trajectories Over Terrain Thermal Inhomogeneities

Abstract

We present an analytical evaluation of the perturbations to mesoscale atmospheric flows induced by surface thermal inhomogeneities., We apply the theory to a sea breeze case in the presence or in the absence of an inland lake. We show also some particles trajectories for these two cases. Furthermore we show that at least to the extend of the linear response of the atmosphere terrain thermal inhomogeneities which have a separation of the order of the depth of the boundary layer need not be resolved in a numerical model, because these inhomogeneities are spatially averaged by the atmospheric response.

The problem is approached using Laplace transform theory for the time behavior and Green function theory for the spatial structure.