Atmospheric Convection: Research and Operational Forecasting Aspects (CISM International Centre for Mechanical Sciences (475))

A book on atmospheric convection treated in detail from different angles including the theoretical aspects of atmospheric deep convection and the weather phenomena related to convection. The problem of boundary conditions that result in severe convective weather patterns is explored within the framework of worldwide climatology and weather forecasting, including forecast verification, by means of their dynamic and thermodynamic properties. The book aims to bridge the gap between theory and its operational application both within the fields of weather forecasting and that of risk management. It addresses itself to meteorologists, physicists and weather forecasters, but will also be invaluable to PhD students attending courses on environment fluid dynamics and meteorology. Each chapter is practically self-contained and there are no propaedeutic sections that the reader needs to peruse before moving on to the more advanced ones. Front Matter....Pages I-VIII An Overview of Atmospheric Convection....Pages 1-6 The Concept of Buoyancy and Its Application to Deep Moist Convection....Pages 7-15 Pressure Fluctuations Associated with Deep Moist Convection....Pages 17-21 Convective Storm Initiation and Organization....Pages 23-28 Supercell Thunderstorms....Pages 29-43 Tornadoes and Tornadogenesis....Pages 45-55 Dynamical Aspects of Topography: The Role of Obstacles....Pages 57-73 Thermodynamic Aspects of Topography: the Role of Elevation....Pages 75-99 Topography: the Global Player in Meteorology....Pages 101-111 Environmental Conditions Associated with Convective Phenomena: Proximity Soundings....Pages 113-122 Development and Use of Climatologies of Convective Weather....Pages 123-131 Ingredients-Based Forecasting....Pages 133-140 Practical Aspects of Forecasting Severe Convection in the United States: Environmental Conditions and Initiation....Pages 141-148 Practical Aspects of Forecasting Severe Convection in the United States: Storm Evolution and Warning....Pages 149-155 General considerations on the operational forecasts of severe convective events: from medium to short range....Pages 157-176 General considerations on the operational forecasts of severe convective events: from short range to nowcasting....Pages 177-194 Weather Forecast Verification....Pages 195-222 Back Matter....Pages 223-227

This book treats atmospheric convection from different angles including the theoretical aspects of atmospheric deep convection and the weather phenomena related to convection. The problem of boundary conditions that result in severe convective weather patterns is explored within the framework of worldwide climatology. The book bridges the gap between theory and its operational application both within the fields of weather forecasting and that of risk management.