Premium
Does Lower‐Stratospheric Shear Influence the Mesoscale Organization of Convection?
Author(s) -
Lane Todd P.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2020gl091025
Subject(s) - mesoscale meteorology , stratosphere , wind shear , troposphere , convection , shear (geology) , geology , atmospheric sciences , mesoscale convective system , gravity wave , meteorology , geophysics , climatology , physics , wave propagation , wind speed , optics , petrology
Organized mesoscale convection is important for many atmospheric phenomena and hazards, however the understanding of its governing mechanisms is incomplete. Theories explaining mesoscale organization rely on the interaction between convection outflows and lower‐tropospheric wind shear. Here a new mechanism is presented, where lower‐stratospheric wind shear is shown to influence mesoscale organization. The mechanism is linked to coupling between convection and gravity waves, with the stratosphere playing a role in shaping the tropospheric wave spectrum. The key result is that lower‐stratospheric shear creates a preference for organized systems propagating in the same direction as the shear vector by weakening the systems propagating in the opposite direction to the shear. This result has important implications for stratosphere‐troposphere interactions, numerical modeling, and understanding of convective organization in general.