An Ensemble of Convective Systems on 11 February 1993 during TOGA COARE:Morphology, Rainfall Characteristics, and Anvil Cloud Interactions

Abstract

An active day during the Coupled Ocean?Atmosphere Response Experiment (COARE) Intensive Observation Period (IOP) is examined in which nine convective systems evolved and moved eastward across the region of shipboard radar coverage in the Intensive Flux Array (IFA) within westerly wind burst conditions. The detailed genesis, morphology, and interactions between these cloud systems are documented from a radar and satellite perspective. One of these systems was a large and complex elliptical cluster, among the largest observed during the Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere COARE. Multiple, parallel deep convective lines spaced 20?30 km apart and embedded within this system were initially oriented from north-northwest to south-southeast, oblique to the storm motion. Furthermore, the lines underwent counterclockwise realignment as the system moved eastward. The influence of strong lower-tropospheric directional and speed shear on these convective system properties is examined in the context of a dynamic, large-scale near-equatorial trough/transequatorial flow regime. A daily analysis of flow conditions during the 119-day IOP revealed that this type of synoptic regime was present in the IFA at least 40% of the time. Radar-derived rainfall statistics are examined throughout the life cycles of each individual convective system. Spatial mapping of accumulated rainfall reveals long, linear swaths produced by the most intense cells embedded within convective lines. The evolution of rainfall properties includes an increase in the stratiform rainfall fraction and areal coverage in later generations of systems, with a peak in total rainfall production after local midnight. These trends can be explained by anvil cloud interactions originating within the sequence of closely spaced disturbances, including the effects of both enhanced midtropospheric moisture and also strong reversing (easterly) shear. The issue of boundary layer recovery between the frequent, intense convective systems on this day is also examined.