Observational analysis of a Mediterranean ‘hurricane’ over south‐eastern Italy

Moscatello, A.; Miglietta, Mario Marcello; Rotunno, Richard

doi:10.1002/wea.231

Cited by 64 publications

(67 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…The tropical transition, responsible for the generation of medicanes, is a very complex mechanism, as shown for example by Davis and Bosart (2004) or Moscatello et al (2008). It depends on synoptic features (an upper level cut-off low, vertical wind shear), on local air-sea interactions and on small-scale processes (convection developing around the location of the low and liberating latent heat) that are parameterized in climate models.…”

Section: Simulation Of Observed Medicanesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Simulation of medicanes over the Mediterranean Sea in a regional climate model ensemble: impact of ocean–atmosphere coupling and increased resolution

et al. 2016

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International audienceMedicanes are cyclones over the Mediterranean Sea having a tropical-like structure but a rather small size, that can produce significant damage due to the combination of intense winds and heavy precipitation. Future climate projections, performed generally with individual atmospheric climate models, indicate that the intensity of the medicanes could increase under climate change conditions. The availability of large ensembles of high resolution and ocean–atmosphere coupled regional climate model (RCM) simulations, performed in MedCORDEX and EURO-CORDEX projects, represents an opportunity to improve the assessment of the impact of climate change on medicanes. As a first step towards such an improved assessment, we analyze the ability of the RCMs used in these projects to reproduce the observed characteristics of medicanes, and the impact of increased resolution and air-sea coupling on their simulation. In these storms, air-sea interaction plays a fundamental role in their formation and intensification, a different mechanism from that of extra-tropical cyclones, where the baroclinic instability mechanism prevails. An observational database, based on satellite images combined with high resolution simulations (Miglietta et al. in Geophys Res Lett 40:2400–2405, 2013), is used as a reference for evaluating the simulations. In general, the simulated medicanes do not coincide on a case-by-case basis with the observed medicanes. However, observed medicanes with a high intensity and relatively long duration of tropical characteristics are better replicated in simulations. The observed spatial distribution of medicanes is generally well simulated, while the monthly distribution reveals the difficulty of simulating the medicanes that first appear in September after the summer minimum in occurrence. Increasing the horizontal resolution has a systematic and generally positive impact on the frequency of simulated medicanes, while the general underestimation of their intensity is not corrected in most cases. The capacity of a few models to better simulate the medicane intensity suggests that the model formulation is more important than reducing the grid spacing alone. A negative intensity feedback is frequently the result of air-sea interaction for tropical cyclones in other basins. The introduction of air-sea coupling in the present simulations has an overall limited impact on medicane frequency and intensity, but it produces an interesting seasonal shift of the simulated medicanes from autumn to winter. This fact, together with the analysis of two contrasting particular cases, indicates that the negative feedback could be limited or even absent in certain situations. We suggest that the effects of air-sea interaction on medicanes may depend on the oceanic mixed layer depth, thus increasing the applicability of ocean–atmosphere coupled RCMs for climate change analysis of this kind of cyclones

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Section: Simulation Of Observed Medicanesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Medicanes can produce considerable damage due to the combination of intense winds and heavy precipitation. Observed cases of tropical-like cyclones in the Mediterranean region have been analyzed in detail (Pytharoulis et al 2000;Reale and Atlas 2001;Homar et al 2003;Moscatello et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulation of medicanes over the Mediterranean Sea in a regional climate model ensemble: impact of ocean–atmosphere coupling and increased resolution

et al. 2016

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“…Among the different numerical setups, the simulations that better reproduce the observed cyclone trajectory (as shown in Fig. 1, Moscatello et al, 2008) are shown in the present paper and are employed to investigate the physical mechanisms responsible for the cyclone development.…”

Section: Numerical Setupmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…3 and 5 in Moscatello et al, 2008). As we will discuss hereafter, numerical simulations with both modelling systems are able to properly capture the timing and intensity of the small-scale-cyclone development, at least during its passage inland where surface data are available for comparison.…”

Section: Numerical Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The role of surface fluxes in the development of a tropical-like cyclone in southern Italy

et al. 2008

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Abstract. Numerical simulations of a tropical-like cyclone in southern Italy have been performed with two different modelling systems (BOLAM-MOLOCH and WRF) with the aim of discussing the role of the surface fluxes in the development of the vortex and evaluating their intensity during the mature stage of the cyclone. Although significant differences emerge in their intensity, both the modelling systems agree in showing that the surface fluxes are more important than the latent heat release associated with convection in the initial phase of the vortex lifecycle, while they are less relevant (although more intense) when the minimum assumes the characteristic of a tropical cyclone.

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The oceanic response of the Turkish Straits System to an extreme drop in atmospheric pressure

et al. 2014

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Moorings across all four entry/exit sections of the Dardanelles Strait and the Bosphorus Strait simultaneously measured the response of the Turkish Straits System to the passage of a severe cyclonic storm that included an atmospheric pressure drop of more than 30 mbar in less than 48 h. The bottom pressure response at the Aegean Sea side of the Dardanelles Strait was consistent with an inverted barometer response, but the response at the other sections did not follow an inverted barometer, leading to a large bottom pressure gradient through the Turkish Straits System. Upper-layer flow toward the Aegean Sea was reversed by the storm and flow toward the Black Sea was greatly enhanced. Bottom pressure across the Sea of Marmara peaked 6 h after the passage of the storm's minimum pressure. The response on the Dardanelles side was a combination of sea elevation and pycnocline depth rise, and the response on the Bosphorus side was an even greater sea elevation rise and a drop in pycnocline depth. The peak in bottom pressure in the Sea of Marmara was followed by another reverse in the flow through the Dardanelles Strait as flow was then directed away from the Sea of Marmara in both straits. A simple conceptual model without wind is able to explain fluctuations in bottom pressure in the Sea of Marmara to a 0.89-0.96 level of correlation. This stresses the importance of atmospheric pressure dynamics in driving the mass flux of the Turkish Strait System for extreme storms.

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Observational analysis of a Mediterranean ‘hurricane’ over south‐eastern Italy

Cited by 64 publications

References 13 publications

Simulation of medicanes over the Mediterranean Sea in a regional climate model ensemble: impact of ocean–atmosphere coupling and increased resolution

Simulation of medicanes over the Mediterranean Sea in a regional climate model ensemble: impact of ocean–atmosphere coupling and increased resolution

The role of surface fluxes in the development of a tropical-like cyclone in southern Italy

The oceanic response of the Turkish Straits System to an extreme drop in atmospheric pressure

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