Numerical simulations of the interaction between gravity waves and turbulence during ATReC

The NASA ER-2 and University of North Dakota Citation II aircraft participated in the 2003 Atlantic THORPEX Regional Campaign (ATReC) in support of the NASA Advanced Satellite Aviation-weather Products development initiative from November 17 to December 17, 2003. As part of this campaign, NASA's ER-2 conducted flights focusing on satellite sensor validation and interferometric sounder data applications development, in coordination with the UND Citation II aircraft. The ER-2 and the Citation conducted stacked flight legs at approximate altitudes of 18 km and 11 km, respectively. On one particular flight, 5 December 2003, the Citation experienced moderate turbulence in cloud, near deep convection, and the ER-2 experienced light clear air turbulence (CAT) aloft. Inspection of satellite imagery surrounding the turbulence encounter reveals wave-like signatures in the cloud fields, possibly indicating strong gravity wave activity. High resolution numerical simulations are performed to investigate the interaction between the convectively-generated gravity waves and turbulence experienced by the ER-2 and Citation during this event.