Ensemble Simulation of Tropical Convection in a Two-Column Model

A two-column model is constructed to study the interaction between tropical convection and "large-scale" vertical circulations. A 3D cloud-resolving model is used to simulate explicitly the convection in the two columns, and a scheme is used to represent approximately the buoyancy adjustment between the two columns. The large-scale circulation is driven by imposing different sea surface temperatures (SSTs) between the two columns. Rising motion occurs over the higher SST and sinking motion over the lower SST. We view this model as a novel way to use cumulus ensemble model to determine how cumulus convection interacts with large-scale circulations.