WRF simulation on a cold pool in Salt Lake Valley during the PCAPS field campaign

Cold-pools are temperature inversions frequently occur in mountain valleys and basins, especially in winter times. Cold pools that last for multiple days can degrade air quality and reduce visibility. And it also poses challenges on weather forecasting.

The WRF model is used to simulate a persistent cold pool episode observed in December 2010 during the Persistent Cold Air Pool Study (PCAPS) field campaign in Utah's Salt Lake Valley. The WRF simulations were first validated using various in-situ observations in the valley. The WRF simulation adequately captured the structure and evolution of the cold air pool. WRF also successfully simulated the processes leading to a partial breakup during one episode and to the final cold pool removal. The simulation also examined the interaction between the lake breeze from the Great Salt Lake and the cold air pools in the Salt Lake Valley. Analyses of the thermal dynamic budget help to determine the relative contribution of advection, radiation and turbulence to the formation and break of the persistent cold pool.