A12C:
Mesoscale Convective Systems: Observations and Modeling at Various Scales I

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Session ID#: 31030

Session Description:
Mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) are significant rain-producing weather systems over the globe. Both measurement and model simulation of MCSs are challenging because (1) these systems are too small to be captured by the routine sounding network, but too large to be represented by point observations, and (2) the systems require models with a domain of several hundred to thousand kilometers, yet fine enough resolution to properly simulate individual thunderstorm elements. This session invite studies that use observations and model simulations at various scales to improve our understanding and model simulations of MCSs. Relevant topics include: (1) MCS initiation and propagation mechanisms, especially over the central United States, (2) dynamics of MCSs, (3) cloud microphysics and macrophysics of MCSs and aerosol impacts, (4) Treatment and evaluation of MCSs in global climate models, and (5) MCS simulations and evaluation in high-resolution models.
Primary Convener:  Jiwen Fan, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, United States
Conveners:  Robert Houze, University of Washington Seattle Campus, Seattle, WA, United States, Mitchell W Moncrieff, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, United States and Russ S Schumacher, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
Chairs:  Robert Houze, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States and Jiwen Fan, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, United States
OSPA Liaison:  Jiwen Fan, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, United States
Index Terms:

3314 Convective processes [ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES]
3329 Mesoscale meteorology [ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES]
3332 Mesospheric dynamics [ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES]
3337 Global climate models [ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES]

Abstracts Submitted to this Session:

Mesoscale Convective Systems Under Climate Change: Results from North American Scale Convection-Permitting Climate Simulations (Invited) (215490)
Andreas F Prein1, Changhai Liu2, Kyoko Ikeda3, Stanley B Trier1, Randy Bullock1, Roy Rasmussen3, Greg J Holland4 and Martyn P Clark5, (1)National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, United States, (2)NCAR/RAL, Boulder, CO, United States, (3)NCAR/RAL, Boulder, United States, (4)NCAR, Boulder, CO, United States, (5)Hydrometeorological Applications Program, Research Applications Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, United States
10 Ways to Improve the Representation of MCSs in Climate Models (Invited) (232832)
Courtney Schumacher, Texas A&M University College Station, College Station, TX, United States
Evaluation of a Mesoscale Convective System in Variable-Resolution CESM (259201)
Ashley Elizabeth Payne, University of Michigan, Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, Ann Arbor, MI, United States and Christiane Jablonowski, University of Michigan, Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, Ann Arbor, United States
Simulations and Evaluation of Mesoscale Convective Systems in a Multi-scale Modeling Framework (MMF) (266693)
Jiun-Dar Chern and Wei-Kuo Tao, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, United States
Convective Mode and Mesoscale Heavy Rainfall Forecast Challenges during a High-Impact Weather Period along the Gulf Coast and Florida from 17–20 May 2016 (211276)
Lance F Bosart, University at Albany State University of New York, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, Albany, United States and Brendan C. Wallace, University at Albany State University of New York, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, Albany, NY, United States
What Determines Upscale Growth of Oceanic Convection into MCSs? (254313)
Edward J Zipser, University of Utah, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
Microphysical characteristics of squall-line stratiform precipitation and transition zones inferred using an ice particle property-evolving model (272847)
Anders A Jensen, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, United States, Jerry Y Harrington, Penn State University, University Park, United States and Hugh Morrison, NSF NCAR, MMM Laboratory, Boulder, United States
Radar Rainfall Statistics During PECAN (259817)
Tammy Weckwerth, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Earth Observing Laboratory, Boulder, CO, United States and Ulrike Romatschke, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, United States

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