Influence of the Environmental Moisture Field on the 17 November 2013 Outbreak

Faculty Sponsor

Kevin Goebbert

College

Arts and Sciences

Discipline(s)

Geography and Meteorology

Presentation Type

Poster Presentation

Symposium Date

Spring 5-3-2019

Abstract

This work investigates the connection between relevant environmental parameters, such as the low-level moisture field, and the evolution of convective systems. In order to isolate this relationship, the 17 November 2013 severe outbreak is studied in detail. This was a significant event that resulted in numerous reports of damage from strong winds, large hail, and 75 confirmed tornadoes. Utilizing the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) data as initial and boundary conditions, a series of Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model simulations were produced to isolate the impact of moisture on this outbreak. An unaltered control run was produced to closely replicate the environmental conditions of this outbreak. Additional simulations modify the moisture content of the initial environment to identify the influence this adjustment exerts on the event’s evolution. Moisture plays a considerable role in forecasting the onset and intensity of convective systems; thus, understanding this relationship further is essential to improving forecasting skill for similar outbreaks in the future.

Biographical Information about Author(s)

The authors of this work include two senior and one sophomore meteorology majors who have a long standing passion for severe weather. After graduation their interests are focused on pursuing severe storm dynamics research as well as working in operations forecasting for hurricane events.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS