Coastal Observations and Model Simulations associated with African Easterly Wave Passage during the 2006 AMMA SOP-3 field Campaign

During the downstream Special-Observing Period 3 (SOP3) of the African Monsoon Multidisciplinary analyses campaign of 2006, surface and aircraft observations were taken along coastal areas in West Africa. These measurements provide a unique way of examining the passage of African Easterly Waves (AEWs). Several of these waves were associated with tropical cyclones that formed downstream over the tropical eastern Atlantic. Moreover, the measurements allow for direct comparison to real-time forecasts and hind-casts. In this presentation, we examine simulations associated with TS-Debby, TD-8 (later Hurricane Helene), and AEWs associated with TC-Issac, and Gordon. Some of the measurements shown in this presentation includes: rawinsonde, radar, flux tower, radiation, and limited dropsonde, lidar and cloud radar data. Global and mesoscale modeling results will be compared to the observations for the various AEWs.