High resolution and in situ observations in the hurricane boundary layer: Ike and Gustav

A Doppler On Wheels (DOW) radar deployed within the eyes of hurricanes Gustav and Ike (2008) as they made landfall. Fine-scale temporal and spatial resolution data were obtained in the hurricane boundary layer resolving the rapid time evolution of sub-kilometer hurricane boundary layer rolls. An array of 10 1-m deployable weather stations were placed within a few kilometers of the DOW in each case, permitting comparisons of low level DOW-measured wind fields with 1-m winds. Some of these stations were near and/or co-located with FCMP 10-m wind towers. Two instrumented vehicles collected data at 3.5 m AGL. In Ike, a series of mesovortices were observed in the eye. Results of comparisons between radar and surface observations and mesovortex behavior will be presented.