Historically, a number of tests cases have been used to examine the efficiency and accuracy of discrete solvers for the nonhydrostatic Navier Stokes equations used in high resolution NWP models. These test cases, including 2D and 3D mountain waves, gravity currents and thermals, and moist convection, are generally not well documented in the literature. We present a set of test cases that probe the robustness of the solvers with respect to nonhydrostatic motions. We discuss the aspects of the solver that are tested in each case, the critical aspects of test configurations (e.g., boundary conditions, dissipation mechanisms, etc.), and the important features of the solution. We also present cases that test the performance of solvers when important solution features lie at the limit of solver resolution (as is often the case in high resolution NWP).

We present this test suite as a first step toward standardizing the testing of nonhydrostatic model dynamical cores. We welcome input from the broader community, including collaboration to develop other tests and refine existing tests. We anticipate that a paper describing the test cases will be published.