Expressions of Intent for International Polar Year 2007-2008 Activities

Expression of Interest Details

PROPOSAL INFORMATION

Greenland Jets  (GLJ)

Outline
The flow response of Greenland has attracted considerable scientific interest in various fields of atmospheric research. There are studies on Greenland’s impact on the formation and prediction of the Icelandic Low. There are studies on local-scale flow phenomena like katabatic winds, barrier winds, tip jets, tropospheric and stratospheric mountain waves. There are studies on Rossby wave excitation and their downstream propagation and on synoptic-scale vortices interacting with the large-scale topography. There are studies on the ice sheet mass balance and their relentless thinning during the recent years. Last but not least, there are studies on air-sea exchange in the Labrador and Irminger Sea surrounding Greenland’s southern portion.In particular, most of the observational and numerical studies focus on the complex flow to the east of Greenland. Whereas observations mainly rely on surface measurements (synop stations, buoys, ships, and, more recently, on satellite products as QuikSCAT sea-surface winds), the majority of studies restrict themselves to numerical experimentation. Observations of the three-dimensional tropospheric wind field in the lee of Greenland are rare exceptions.The project will investigate the dynamics of Greenlands lee jets (barrier winds, tip jets, katabatic winds) by airborne Doppler lidar measurements of the three-dimensional wind field. The Doppler lidar observations are thought to be complementary to other field activities during the IPY.Another crucial aspect of the project is to demonstrate the utility of targeted wind observations in predicted sensitive areas using the airborne wind lidar and the near-real time assimilation of the wind data in the ECMWF numerical weather prediction system. This research will link the project with activities in the framework of THORPEX.

What significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes and targets can be anticipated from this project?
§ Increase knowledge of the three-dimensional wind fields in the data-sparse region east of Greenland; create a dataset as test bed for mesoscale numerical studies devoted to the flow response of Greenland§ Improve the ability to predict interaction between the large-scale circulation and meso- and microscale flow systems generated by the Greenlands flow response§ Increase knowledge about observing strategies in data sparse areas and improve the usage of Doppler wind data for the assimilation in NWP models

What international collaboration is involved in this project?
The project has main investigators from Germany, Iceland, Norway and close collaborations to institutions in UK, Canada, and the USA. It will form an integral part of the THORPEX contribution to IPY.

FIELD ACTIVITY DETAILS

Geographical location(s) for the proposed field activities:
Aircraft-based measurements along the east coast of Greenland and between Iceland and Greenland. The DLR research aircraft will be based in Keflavik, Iceland.

Approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities:
Arctic: 02/07 – 03/07      10/07 – 11/07      02/08 – 04/08
Antarctic: n/a

Significant facilities will be required for this project:
We will ask for support for flight hours from the European Space Agency ESA in the framework of validation activities for the Atmopheric Dynamics Mission ADM-Aeolus, either before launch in 2007 with an airborne demonstrator or after launch in 2008. Otherwise, independent national funding will be sought for the project.

Will the project leave a legacy of infrastructure?
The project will support high-performance computing facilities for polar research at the University of Iceland.

How is it envisaged that the required logistic support will be secured?

Has the project been "endorsed" at a national or international level?

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE

Is the project a short-term expansion (over the IPY 2007-2008 timeframe) of an existing plan, programme or initiative or is it a new autonomous proposal?


There is a possibility that the envisaged observations will be part of the ESA validation campaign for the space-borne wind lidar system.In addition this programme is suitable to integrate as one component of the WMO programme THORPEX, which aims at accelerating improvements for weather forecasting including strategies for targeting of observations in data sparse, sensitive regions.

How will the project be organised and managed?
The project will be managed and organised in collaboration with other field activities around Greenland. The organisation of the specific fight operations of the DLR research aircraft Falcon will be performed by DLR. Experience in operation of an airborne Doppler lidar onboard the research aircraft Falcon deployed for measurements around Greenland exists already.

What are the initial plans of the project for addressing the education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
The scientific results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed scientific journals and at international conferences. The campaign and it results will be viewed on publically available web sites. The results of this project will be incorporated in the courses of natural sciences at the University of Iceland. Parts of the research will be taught in the DLR School lab at Oberpfaffenhofen.

What are the initial plans of the project to address data management issues (as outlined in the Framework document?
It is planned to disseminate the wind data via the WMO Global Telecommunication System (GTS) in near-real time. More detailed data are freely available after the campaign.

How is it proposed to fund the project?
The involved parties will seek for funding on a national level, and on an European level (ESA, EC).

Is there additional information you wish to provide?
The project forms a key element of the work proposed by a joint THORPEX-IPY initiative

PROPOSER DETAILS

Dr. Andreas Dörnbrack
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V.
Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre
Münchner Str. 20
D-82230 WESSLING
Germany

Tel: ++49 8153 282588
Mobile: no
Fax: ++49 8153 281841
Email:

Other project members and their affiliation