Observation and analysis of coastally trapped wind reversals
By:  Steven P. Sopko
Publisher: Naval Postgraduate School; Available from National Technical Information Service
Published: 1998
Place of publication: Monterey, Calif; Springfield, Va
Language: eng
Number of pages: 132
Other titles: NPS-MR-99-001.
Description: During the warm season (April-September), the California coast is under the influence of persistent northwesterly flow. Periodically, this flow is replaced by a narrow band of southerly winds along the coast. The  transition to southerly flow is often accompanied by a rise in sea-level pressure, lower temperatures, coastal stratus, and fog. The mesoscale disturbance  responsible for this southerly  transition has become known as a coastally trapped wind reversal  (CTWR). While it is clear that these  mesoscale disturbances are forced by the interaction of the  coastal topography with the synoptic-scale flow, the exact  mechanisms for their development and their governing dynamics  remain the subject of much  debate. The present study  examines three cases from 1996  that appear to have the characteristics of a CTWR. Each  case is analyzed to determine the  associated synoptic-scale forcing  and the respective mesoscale  structure. The observed  synoptic-scale forcing is compared to the results of a climafological  study conducted by Mass and  Bond (1996). Results from a  modeling study by Skamarock et al. (1998) are used to create a conceptual model for comparison with the observed development and mesoscale% structure of each event. Results of this study show that only two of the cases can be classified as a CTWR. The study also shows that variability exists in the synoptic-scale forcing associated with the initiation of a CTWR. Two mechanisms for the development of the offshore mesoscale low, and ultimately the CTWR, have been identified. The variability of the mesoscale structure in each CTWR is also documented.
Notes: "December 1998."

Thesis advisor(s): Wendell A. Nuss.

NPS-MR-99-001.

Thesis (M.S. in Meteorology and Physical Oceanography) Naval Postgraduate School, December 1998.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-129).

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited.

Also available online.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements: Adobe Acrobat reader.

US Navy (USN) author.

dk/dk cc:9116 3/3/99