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Precipitation development in a New Mexico thunderstorm
Author(s) -
Raymond D. J.,
Blyth A. M.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
quarterly journal of the royal meteorological society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.744
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1477-870X
pISSN - 0035-9009
DOI - 10.1002/qj.49711549011
Subject(s) - graupel , thunderstorm , precipitation , atmospheric sciences , geology , particle (ecology) , accretion (finance) , meteorology , environmental science , physics , astrophysics , oceanography
Observations were made of a thunderstorm over Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research on 2 August 1984. Four Doppler radars were closely spaced, allowing observations to be taken at high elevation angles. As a result, the vertical component of the precipitation particle velocity was accurately measured. In conjunction with the vertical air velocity, obtained by integration of the continuity equation, the particle terminal velocity field was computed. Backward integration of particle trajectories showed that most precipitation embryos originated near the tops of thunderstorm precursor clouds when these cloud tops were 7–8 km above sea level. Early and mature phase precipitation grew by accretion at levels below 7 km, and resulted in relatively high density graupel or hail. Late phase precipitation underwent growth mainly above 8 km, and was sufficiently small in diameter and low in density to undergo rapid melting at the freezing level.