Evaluation of the TEB urban model over Montreal in late winter and spring conditions

During the Montreal Urban Snow Experiment (MUSE, March-April 2005), thermo-radiative exchanges have been documented for a densely built-up area of Montreal (QC, Canada) in late winter and spring conditions. Measurements have also been done to characterize the snow properties. In order to evaluate its performance in winter and cold conditions, the Town Energy Balance (TEB) was integrated in an offline mode for the entire period of the experiment. Several aspects of these runs were evaluated against the MUSE observations, including the surface temperatures of various urban facets, and the surface radiation and energy balances. Particular attention was given to TEB's ability to accurately represent the evolution of snow characteristics (depth, density, cover) in an urban environment.