Climate Change and the Sea Breeze in the North Carolina Coast

With nearly 75% of the world's population projected to live in or near coastal regions by the year 2030, understanding climatological implications of coastal phenomenon is becoming increasingly important. One such coastal phenomenon found along coastlines throughout the world is the sea breeze (SB). In the summertime, the variability of precipitation along the North Carolina coast is heavily dependent on SB-induced convection. Specifically, 50% of North Carolina coastal summer precipitation can be attributed to SB convection. This research aims to provide insight into how a warmer 21st century may alter SB evolution along the North Carolina coast by using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) numerical model. The first phase of this study investigates the performance of the WRF model in reproducing present climate sea breeze events. The second phase of this study utilizes the pseudo-global warming (PGW) approach, which will allow comparison of present climate SB simulations (phase 1) to future replications of the same event, but with modified thermodynamics representing a warmer climate.