Ship-based in-situ observation of precipitating systems and accompanying atmosphere-ocean variations at the western end of the maritime continent: A contribution to Pre-YMC 2015 field campaign

The maritime continent is one of the most vital regions to promote the atmospheric convections. Though the diurnal cycle is prominent feature to regulate the convections, synoptic, subseasonal (intraseasonal), seasonal and interannual cycles are also major factor to modulate the convective activities. To reveal the nature of the convective systems and background atmosphere-ocean-land interactions, we deploy the research vessel “Mirai” off the west coast of Sumatera Island, Indonesia, where is the western end of the maritime continent facing to the Indian Ocean. The data will be obtained continuously for more than three weeks in November and December 2015 when the seasonal peak of the convective activity appear. The continuous observation of shipboard C-band polarimetric scanning radar, with 3-hourly profiling by radiosonde and CTD, will provide the detailed structure of the convections and surrounding atmosphere-ocean systems. In the presentation, we will introduce our observations and then report the preliminary results from the observed data, by introducing the overview of the variations for whole periods, diurnal appearance of the convection, and their modulation by the larger- and/or smaller-scale features. The collaborative results with the land-based and/or buoy-based observations will be also introduced.