Evening Transition Observations in Phoenix, Arizona

Past research has suggested that the evening transition in complex topography typically has several main features, such as (a) continued weak upslope flows persisting 3–5 h after sunset (if the sidewalls of the valley prevent Coriolis-induced turning of winds), thus signifying delayed transition; (b) unsteady local stagnation and vertical mixing within tens of meters above the surface; and (c) transition of stagnation fronts to downslope/downvalley gravity currents during the evening hours, especially at higher-elevation (steeper) slopes, and their arrival at adjoining low-elevation gentle slopes as “slope breezes.” This transition process typically occurs in locales such as Phoenix, Arizona, which has expansive exposure to plains in one direction (to the west and south) and is adjacent to abrupt change in the terrain in other directions (primarily to the north and east). An analysis of wind records from several automated weather stations and a radar wind profiler for selected characteristic peri...