Editorial Type:
Article
Article Type:
Research Article

On the Role of Surface Fluxes and WISHE in Tropical Cyclone Intensification

Fuqing Zhang Department of Meteorology, and Center for Advanced Data Assimilation and Predictability Techniques, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, and Program in Atmospheres, Oceans, and Climate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Kerry Emanuel Program in Atmospheres, Oceans, and Climate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Print Publication:
01 May 2016
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-16-0011.1
Page(s):
2011–2019
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Abstract

The authors show that the feedback between surface wind and surface enthalpy flux is an important influence on tropical cyclone evolution, even though, as with at least some classical instability mechanisms, such a feedback is not strictly necessary. When the wind speed is artificially capped in idealized numerical experiments, storm development is slowed and storms achieve a smaller final intensity. When it is capped in simulations of an actual storm (Hurricane Edouard of 2014), the quality of the simulations is strongly compromised; for example, little development occurs when the wind speed is capped at 5 m s−1, in contrast to the category-3 hurricane shown by observations and produced by the control experiment.

Corresponding author address: Professor Fuqing Zhang, Department of Meteorology, The Pennsylvania State University, 503 Walker Building, University Park, PA 16802. E-mail: fzhang@psu.edu

Abstract

The authors show that the feedback between surface wind and surface enthalpy flux is an important influence on tropical cyclone evolution, even though, as with at least some classical instability mechanisms, such a feedback is not strictly necessary. When the wind speed is artificially capped in idealized numerical experiments, storm development is slowed and storms achieve a smaller final intensity. When it is capped in simulations of an actual storm (Hurricane Edouard of 2014), the quality of the simulations is strongly compromised; for example, little development occurs when the wind speed is capped at 5 m s−1, in contrast to the category-3 hurricane shown by observations and produced by the control experiment.

Corresponding author address: Professor Fuqing Zhang, Department of Meteorology, The Pennsylvania State University, 503 Walker Building, University Park, PA 16802. E-mail: fzhang@psu.edu
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