Observation of mountain lee waves with MODIS NIR column water vapor

Mountain lee waves have been previously observed in data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) “water vapor” 6.7 µm channel which has a typical peak sensitivity at 550 hPa in the free troposphere. This paper reports the first observation of mountain waves generated by the Appalachian Mountains in the MODIS total column water vapor (CWV) product derived from near‐infrared (NIR) (0.94 µm) measurements, which indicate perturbations very close to the surface. The CWV waves are usually observed during spring and late fall or some summer days with low to moderate CWV (below ~2 cm). The observed lee waves display wavelengths from 3–4 to 15 km with an amplitude of variation often comparable to ~50–70% of the total CWV. Since the bulk of atmospheric water vapor is confined to the boundary layer, this indicates that the impact of these waves extends deep into the boundary layer, and these may be the lowest level signatures of mountain lee waves presently detected by remote sensing over the land.

[1]  Dong L. Wu,et al.  A three‐dimensional mountain wave imaged in satellite radiance throughout the stratosphere: Evidence of the effects of directional wind shear , 2007 .

[2]  Ralf Bennartz,et al.  Retrieval of columnar water vapour over land from backscattered solar radiation using the Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer , 2001 .

[3]  R. S. Scorer,et al.  Theory of waves in the lee of mountains , 1949 .

[4]  C. Tucker,et al.  Multi-angle implementation of atmospheric correction for MODIS (MAIAC): 3. Atmospheric correction , 2012 .

[5]  S. Fritz.  The Significance of Mountain Lee Waves as Seen from Satellite Pictures. , 1965 .

[6]  Jan-Peter Muller,et al.  Comparison of precipitable water vapor derived from radiosonde, GPS, and Moderate‐Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer measurements , 2003 .

[7]  Alexei Lyapustin,et al.  Interpolation and Profile Correction (IPC) Method for Shortwave Radiative Transfer in Spectral Intervals of Gaseous Absorption , 2003 .

[8]  Seongryong Kim,et al.  American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved. Evidence of Volatile-Induced Melting , 2022 .

[9]  P. Rosen,et al.  Atmospheric effects in interferometric synthetic aperture radar surface deformation and topographic maps , 1997 .

[10]  Ricardo Todling,et al.  The GEOS-5 Data Assimilation System-Documentation of Versions 5.0.1, 5.1.0, and 5.2.0 , 2008 .

[11]  Jan-Peter Muller,et al.  Interferometric synthetic aperture radar atmospheric correction: Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer and Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar integration , 2006 .

[12]  M. Alexander,et al.  Momentum flux estimates for South Georgia Island mountain waves in the stratosphere observed via satellite , 2009 .

[13]  Ronald B. Smith,et al.  A Modeling Study of Stratospheric Waves over the Southern Andes and Drake Passage , 2013 .

[14]  Yujie Wang,et al.  Multiangle implementation of atmospheric correction (MAIAC): 2. Aerosol algorithm , 2011 .

[15]  Pak Wai Chan,et al.  A multi‐sensor study of water vapour from radiosonde, MODIS and AERONET: a case study of Hong Kong , 2013 .

[16]  A. Smirnov,et al.  AERONET-a federated instrument network and data archive for aerosol Characterization , 1998 .

[17]  Steffen Beirle,et al.  Global trends (1996–2003) of total column precipitable water observed by Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) on ERS‐2 and their relation to near‐surface temperature , 2006 .

[18]  J. Conover.  LEE WAVE CLOUDS PHOTOGRAPHED FROM AN AIRCRAFT AND A SATELLITE , 1964 .

[19]  Dong L. Wu,et al.  A study of mesoscale gravity waves over the North Atlantic with satellite observations and a mesoscale model , 2004 .

[20]  Rene Preusker,et al.  1D-Var retrieval of daytime total columnar water vapour from MERIS measurements , 2011 .

[21]  Dong L. Wu,et al.  UARS MLS Observation of Mountain Waves over the Andes , 2002 .

[22]  Andrea Molod,et al.  Constraints on the Profiles of Total Water PDF in AGCMs from AIRS and a High-Resolution Model , 2012 .

[23]  M. Alexander,et al.  Three‐dimensional properties of Andes mountain waves observed by satellite: A case study , 2011 .

[24]  P. Gierasch,et al.  Long cloud observations on Mars and implications for boundary layer characteristics over slopes , 1982 .

[25]  Anup K. Prasad,et al.  Validation of MODIS Terra, AIRS, NCEP/DOE AMIP‐II Reanalysis‐2, and AERONET Sun photometer derived integrated precipitable water vapor using ground‐based GPS receivers over India , 2009 .

[26]  Yoram J. Kaufman,et al.  Water vapor retrievals using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) near‐infrared channels , 2003 .

[27]  Rene Preusker,et al.  Remote Sensing of Atmospheric Water Vapor Using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer , 2005 .

[28]  Rene Preusker,et al.  Advanced InSAR atmospheric correction: MERIS/MODIS combination and stacked water vapour models , 2009 .

[29]  Laurence S. Rothman,et al.  The HITRAN molecular spectroscopic database: edition of 2000 including updates through 2001 , 2003 .

[30]  S. Solomon,et al.  Contributions of Stratospheric Water Vapor to Decadal Changes in the Rate of Global Warming , 2010, Science.

[31]  J. A. Ernst.  SMS–1 Nighttime Infrared Imagery of Low–Level Mountain Waves , 1976 .

[32]  Yujie Wang,et al.  An automatic cloud mask algorithm based on time series of MODIS measurements , 2008 .

[33]  C. Barnet,et al.  Using Satellite Observations to Constrain Parameterizations of Gravity Wave Effects for Global Models , 2006 .

[34]  Kevin E. Trenberth,et al.  Trends and variability in column-integrated atmospheric water vapor , 2005 .

[35]  P. Preusse,et al.  Global Measurements of Stratospheric Mountain Waves from Space. , 1999, Science.

[36]  Dong L. Wu,et al.  Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) MLS observation of mountain waves over the Andes : SAGE III-Ozone Loss Validation Experiment and Third European Stratospheric Experiment on Ozone-2000 (SOLVE/THESEO) , 2002 .

[37]  Xiangde Xu,et al.  On the use of GPS measurements for Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer precipitable water vapor evaluation over southern Tibet , 2011 .

[38]  Robert Sharman,et al.  Sources and dynamics of turbulence in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere: A review , 2012 .

[39]  Steven A. Ackerman,et al.  Mountain Wave Signatures in MODIS 6.7-μm Imagery and Their Relation to Pilot Reports of Turbulence , 2007 .

[40]  J. Otkin,et al.  Understanding Satellite-Observed Mountain-Wave Signatures Using High-Resolution Numerical Model Data , 2009 .

[41]  Stephen D. Eckermann,et al.  An overview of the past, present and future of gravity‐wave drag parametrization for numerical climate and weather prediction models , 2003 .

[42]  Ronald B. Smith.  The Generation of Lee Waves by the Blue Ridge , 1976 .

[43]  Ashutosh Kumar Singh,et al.  Variability of GPS derived water vapor and comparison with MODIS data over the Indo-Gangetic plains , 2013 .