Tropical Field Campaigns – Air-Sea Interface and Transition Zone

Coherent observations in the atmospheric boundary layer and upper ocean across the air-sea interface from field campaigns have cumulatively provided valuable insight into air-sea interactive processes. This study uses observations from CBLAST 2003-04, ITOP 2010, DYNAMO 2011-12 to better understanding and modeling of the multiscale air-sea interactions in hurricanes and the MJO. The recent advancements in coupled atmosphere-wave-ocean models with increased resolution, e.g., ~O(1 km) grid spacing in regional and O(10 km) in global models, have made it possible to develop and test various new model physics at the air-sea interface with relatively realistic environmental conditions across time scales from hours to subseasonal time scales and beyond. This talk will present an overview of the progress and challenges in air-sea coupling in context of high-impact weather such as tropical cyclones and the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) and their prediction across scales. It will also provide a preview of a future field campaign of the air-sea transition zone, namely the Tropical Equatorial Pacific Experiment (TEPEX).