HIGH-RESOLUTION METEOROLOGICAL MODELING ANALYSIS OF THE VARIATION OF SURFACE HIGH WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH MESOSCALE WEATHER DISTURBANCES

Abstract

The land of Japan is characterized by complex and steep terrains, which influence the strength of severe local storms. Due to high variability of wind speed, gusty winds are not only affected by mesoscale and/or microscale weather disturbances but also by small-scale terrains. This study investigates the variability of severe local winds associated with mesoscale weather disturbances by conducting high-resolution meteorological simulation. It is shown that the high-resolution simulation can represent the short-term and small-scale variability of surface winds. The model well reproduces small-scale vortical structure embedded in mesoscale disturbances that were observed by a Doppler radar implemented for the safety of railroad transport. The vortical disturbances induce locally high winds, which are also affected by small-scale terrain features.