SURFACE-ATMOSPHERE INTERACTIONS DURING A POLYNYA EVENT AT TERRA NOVA BAY (ANTARCTICA)

摘要

Numerical three-dimensional weather simulations,rnsatellite imagery and automatic weather station (AWS)rndata are used to study a real event of coastal polynya atrnTerra Nova Bay (TNB), Antarctica. The event, detectedrnwith satellite images, occurred in the period 12–17 Julyrn2006. The atmospheric simulations are performed by thernlimited area Eta Model. Passive microwave satelliternimages, which are not affected by cloud cover, are usedrnto evaluate the daily polynya size, while thermalrninfrared satellite images are only used to follow cloudrndynamics. The synoptic and sub-synoptic fields are veryrnwell represented by the model results when they arerncompared with AVHRR imagery. Comparisons betweenrnsimulated data and wind measurements by ManuelarnAWS are presented as well. The results are consideredrnsatisfactory. Simulation results show the strikingrnrelationship of surface winds and temperatures with therndevelopment of the polynya as inferred by satelliternimages