Improving energetics in an ideal baroclinic instability case with a Physical Conserving Fidelity model

Abstract

To improve the energetics in the life cycle of an ideal baroclinic instability case, we develop a Physical Conserving Fidelity model (F-model), and we compare the simulations from the F-model to those of the traditional global spectral semi-implicit model (control model). The results for spectral kinetic energy and its budget indicate different performances at smaller scales in the two models. A two-way energy flow emerges in the generation and rapid growth stage of the baroclinic disturbance in the F-model. However, only a downscale mechanism dominates in the control model. In the F-model, the meso- and smaller scales are energized initially, and then an active upscale nonlinear cascade occurs. Thus, disturbances at prior scales are forced by both downscale and upscale energy cascades and by conversion from potential energy. An analysis of the eddy kinetic energy budget also shows remarkable enhancement of the energy conversion rate in the F-model. As a result, characteristics of the ideal baroclinic wave are greatly improved in the F-model, in terms of both intensity and time of formation.

Keywords

energy conversion / energy cascade / ideal baroclinic instability / high order total energy conservation / time-split scheme

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (No. 2012CB957804) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41275109, 41075078 and 41175051).

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2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg