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contributor authorLong, Charles N.
contributor authorMcFarlane, Sally A.
date accessioned2017-06-09T16:48:42Z
date available2017-06-09T16:48:42Z
date copyright2012/03/01
date issued2011
identifier issn1558-8424
identifier otherams-74571.pdf
identifier urihttp://onlinelibrary.yabesh.ir/handle/yetl/4216810
description abstractauru Island at times generates low clouds that impact low-level cloud statistics and downwelling shortwave radiation measurements made at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) site. This study uses five years of Nauru data to quantify the island impact on the site measurements. The results indicate that the solar-heating-produced Nauru island effect occurs about 11% of the time during daylight hours. The island effect increases the 500?1000-m cloud base occurrence by 15%?20% when clouds occur, but because the island effect only occurs 11% of the time the overall increase in daylight low-cloud statistics is 2%, or 1% for 24-h statistics. In a similar way, the island effect produces a reduction of about 17% in the downwelling shortwave (SW) radiation across the daylight hours during the 11% of the time it occurs, an overall 2% daylight (or 1% for 24 h) average reduction. The island effect produces frequent positive downwelling SW cloud effects, in particular during the morning, which tend to somewhat mitigate the overall decrease in downwelling SW radiation that is due to clouds. This produces 17 W m?2 less daylight average SW cloud effect relative to non-island-effect times, in particular for the convectively suppressed regime that typifies island-effect-producing conditions. For long-term overall statistical studies such as model and satellite comparisons, the 2% daylight (or 1% per 24 h) average increase in low-level cloud occurrence and decrease in downwelling SW are not of large concern as long as researchers are aware of them. For shorter-term studies, however, or those that separate data by conditions such as convectively active/suppressed regimes, the Nauru island effect can have significant impacts.
publisherAmerican Meteorological Society
titleQuantification of the Impact of Nauru Island on ARM Measurements
typeJournal Paper
journal volume51
journal issue3
journal titleJournal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology
identifier doi10.1175/JAMC-D-11-0174.1
journal fristpage628
journal lastpage636
treeJournal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology:;2011:;volume( 051 ):;issue: 003
contenttypeFulltext


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