• Atmosphere
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.367-375
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• 2013

We present here the future changes in vertical distribution of temperature and tropopause height using the HadGEM2-AO climate model forced with Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) scenarios. Projected changes during the 21st century are shown as differences from the baseline period (1971~2000) for global vertical distribution of temperature and tropopause height. All RCP scenarios show warming throughout the troposphere and cooling in the stratosphere with amplified warming over the lower troposphere in the Northern Hemisphere high latitudes. Upper troposphere warming reaches a maximum in the tropics at the 300 hPa level associated with lapse-rate feedback. Also, the cooling in the stratosphere and the warming in the troposphere raises the height of the tropopause.

• Atmosphere
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.523-532
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• 2014

In this study, thermal tropopause height defined from WMO (World Meteorological Organization) using temperature profile derived from Advance Microwave Sounding Unit-A (AMSU-A; hereafter named AMSU) onboard EOS (Earth Observing System) Aqua satellite is retrieved. The temperature profile of AMSU was validated by comparison with the radiosonde data observed at Osan weather station. The validation in the upper atmosphere from 500 to 100 hPa pressure level showed that correlation coefficients were in the range of 0.85~0.97 and the bias was less than 1 K with Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of ~3 K. Thermal tropopause height was retrieved by using AMSU temperature profile. The bias and RMSE were found to be -5~ -37 hPa and 45~67 hPa, respectively. Correlation coefficients were in the range of 0.5 to 0.7. We also analyzed the change of tropopause height and temperature in middle troposphere in the extreme heavy rain event (23 October, 2003) associated with tropopause folding. As a result, the distinct descent of tropopause height and temperature decrease of ~8 K at 500 hPa altitude were observed at the hour that maximum precipitation and maximum wind speed occurred. These results were consistent with ERA (ECMWF Reanalysis)-Interim data (potential vorticity, temperature) in time and space.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.34 no.7
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• pp.645-661
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• 2013

The synoptic, thermodynamic, and dynamic characteristics of a heavy snowfall event that occurred in Seoul metropolitan area on 27 to 28 December 2010 was investigated. During this period there was a distinctive case that was identified as a polar low. We analyzed surface and upper level weather charts, snowfall amount, sea surface temperature, satellite imagery, sounding, and the National Center for Environmental Prediction global $1^{\circ}{\times}1^{\circ}$ reanalysis data. The polar low developed in an area where there was strong baroclinicity in the lower level aided by strong conditional instability due to 925 hPa warm air advection and 700 hPa cold air advection. The development mechanism of polar low is due, in part, to the tropopause folding, which advected stratospheric air increasing potential vorticity in mid-level and inducing cyclonic vorticity and convergence in low-level. Eventually clouds developed and there were snowfall total of 10 cm in Seoul metropolitan area and as much as 20 cm in southern parts of Korea. During the snowfall development, there was a $-45^{\circ}C$ cold core at 500 hPa and shortwave maintained $3-5^{\circ}$ separation with surface trough, which favored the development of polar low located in the warm sector and cyclonic advection area. The height of the dynamical tropopause lowered to 700 hPa during the peak development and increase in potential vorticity allowed strong vertical motion to occur. Overall, there was a close relationship between the development of snowfall and tropopause undulation. The heaviest snowfall occurred east of the tropopause folding where strong cyclonic vorticity, vertical motion, and moisture advection all coincided while the polar low was passing through the Korean peninsula.

• Atmosphere
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.301-319
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• 2016

The evolutionary process of the polar low, which caused the heavy snowfall in the East Coast area on 11~12 February 2011, was investigated to describe in detail using synoptic weather charts, satellite imageries, and ERA (European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Re-Analysis) -Interim reanalysis data. It was revealed that 1) the polar low was generated over the sea near Busan where a large cyclonic shear in the inverted trough branched from the parent low existed, 2) during the developing and mature stages, there was a convectively unstable region in the lower layer around the polar low and its south side, 3) the polar low was developed in the region where the static stability in the 500~850 hPa layer was the lowest, 4) the result from the budget analysis of the vorticity equation indicated that the increase in the vorticity at the lower atmosphere, where the polar low was located, was dominated mainly by the stretching term, 5) the warm core structure of the polar low was identified in the surface-700 hPa layer during the mature stage, 6) there was a close inverse relationship between a development of the polar low and the height of the dynamic tropopause over the polar low, and 7) for generation and development of the polar low, large-scale circulation systems, such as upper cold low and its combined short wave trough, major low (parent low), and polar air outbreak, should be presented, indicating that the polar low has the nature of the baroclinic disturbance.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.354-369
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• 2010

The synoptic and kinematic characteristics of a heavy rainfall that occurred in Gangneung region on 22 to 24 October 2006 were investigated using weather maps, infrared images, AWS observation data and NCEP global final analyses data. The total amount of rainfall observed in the region for the period was 316.5 mm, and the instanteneous maximum wind speed was $63.7m\;s^{-1}$. According to the analysis of weather maps, before the starting of the heavy rainfall, an extratropical low pressure system was developed in the middle region of the Korean Peninsula, and an inverted trough was formed in the northern region of the peninsula. In addition, a jet stream on the upper charts of 300 hPa was located over the Yellow Sea and the southern boundary of the peninsula. A cutoff low in the cyclonic shear side of the upper jet streak, which was linked to an anomaly of isentropic potential vorticity, was developed over the northwestern part of the peninsula. And there are analyzed potential vorticity and wind, time-height cross section of potential vorticity, vertical air motion, maximums of the divergence and convergence and vertical distribution of potential temperature in Gangneung region. The analyzed results of the synoptic conditions and kinematic processes strongly suggest that the tropopause folding made a significant role of initializing the heavy rainfall.

• Atmosphere
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.665-672
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• 2016

In this study, we examine future changes in the Hadley cell (HC) strength using CMIP5 climate change simulations. The current study is an extension of a previous study by Seo et al. that used all 30 available models. Here, we select 18-23 well-performing models based on their significant internal sensitivity of the interannual HC strength variation to the latitudinal temperature gradient variation. The model projections along with simple scaling analysis show that the inter-model variability in the HC strength change is a result of the inter-model spread in the meridional temperature gradient across the subtropics for both DJF and JJA, not by the tropopause height or gross static stability change. The HC strength is expected to weaken significantly during DJF, while little change is expected in the JJA HC strength. Compared to the calculations with all model members, selected model statistics increase the linear correlation between the changes in HC strength and meridional temperature gradient by 13~23%, confirming the robust sensitivity of the HC strength to the meridional temperature gradient. Two scaling equations for the selected models predict changes in HC strength better than all-member predictions. In particular, the prediction improvement in DJF is as high as 30%. The simple scaling relations successfully predict both the ensemble-mean changes and model-to-model variations in the HC strength for both seasons.

• Atmosphere
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.149-153
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• 2005

A balloon-borne Optical Particle Counter (hereafter "OPC Sonde"), which was developed by the atmospheric research group of Nagoya University, is used for getting the information of vertical profile of particle size and concentration in Anmyeon ($36^{\circ}32^{\prime}N$ $126^{\circ}19^{\prime}E$) on 18 March 2005. A range of five different particle sizes is shown in the vertical profile of aerosol number density estimated from the OPC Sonde. It was found that small size particles have vertically larger aerosol number density than relatively big ones. For all size ranges the vertical aerosol number density shows a decreased pattern as the altitude becomes higher. The aerosol number density of $0.3{\sim}0.5{\mu}m$, $0.5{\sim}0.8{\mu}m$, $0.8{\sim}1.2{\mu}m$ size ranges at the 10km height, which is the tropopause approximately, are $1,000,000ea/m^3$, $100,000ea/m^3$, $10,000ea/m^3$ respectively. The data of OPC Sonde are also compared with the data of PM10 $\beta$-ray) and Micro Pulse Lidar which are operating at Korea Global Atmosphere Watch Observatory in Anmyeon.

• Atmosphere
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.1-15
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• 2020

This study analyzed and compared development mechanisms leading to heat waves of 2016 and 2018 in Korea. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis Interim (ERA Interim) dataset and Automated Surface Observing System data are used for synoptic scale analysis. The synoptic conditions are investigated using geopotential height, temperature, equivalent potential temperature, thickness, potential vorticity, omega, outgoing longwave radiation, and blocking index, etc. Heat waves in South Korea occur in relation to Western North Pacific Subtropical High (WNPSH) pressure system which moves northwestward to East Asia during summer season. Especially in 2018, WNPSH intensified due to strong large-scale circulation associated with convective activities in the Philippine Sea, and moved farther north to Korea when compared to 2016. In addition, the Tibetan high near the tropopause settled over Northern China on top of WNPSH creating a very strong anticyclonic structure in the upper-level over the Korean Peninsula. Unlike 2018, WNPSH was weaker and centered over the East China Sea in 2016. Analysis of blocking indices show wide blocking phenomena over the North Pacific and the Eurasian continent during heat wave event in both years. The strong upper-level ridge which was positioned zonally near 60°N, made the WNPSH over the South Korea stagnant in both years. Analysis of heat wave intensity (HWI) and duration (HWD) show that HWI and HWD in 2018 was both strong leading to extreme high temperatures. In 2016 however, HWI was relatively weak compared to HWD. The longevity of HWD is attributed to atmosphere blocking in the surrounding Eurasian continent.