The Structure and Intensity of Winter Mesoscale Lake -Effect Circulations Associated With an Isolated Lake

To understand and predict the strength of mesoscale lake-effect circulations a simple function, called the lake-effect intensity index, was developed using the dimensional analysis technique. The intensity index was found to be equivalent to scaling the Froude number by a dimensionless quantity comprised of lake-air temperature difference, fetch distance, air temperature, and boundary layer height to improve its predictive capability. The intensity index: (1) accounts for the relative contributions of variables fundamental to the lake-effect system, (2) effectively predicts the strength of lake-effect circulations from first order fundamental variables that are easily measured, and (3) can be used regardless of the lake-effect morphological regime.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Atmospheric Sciences

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2015

Author dc:creator

• Laird, Neil Francis

Contributors dc:contributor

• David Kristovich

• Geophysics

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

(MiAaPQ)AAI3023107

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/85956