Instrumented Aircraft Observations of the Katabatic Wind Regime Near Terra Nova Bay

Abstract Two aircraft missions to sample the boundary layer dynamics associated with the intense katabatic wind regime at Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica were flown on successive days in early November 1987. Light winds averaging 5 m s−1 were monitored at the 170 m flight level over the interior of the ice sheet. Dramatic acceleration of the airflow and abrupt 5°–7°C cooling were encountered on both days near the head of Reeves Glacier just upslope from where the terrain steepens considerably. These results suggest that much of the airflow convergence which sustains the coastal katabatic winds is forced by localized topographic channeling into Reeves Glacier, and that the descending airstream is negatively buoyant. The horizontally propagating katabatic winds were followed for 250 km directly offshore and for 200 km southward parallel to the Victoria Land coast the airstream momentum gradually decreased along both flight paths. In conjunction with the descent of negatively buoyant air down Reeves Glacier and h...