by Robert Banks

Robert Banks, an ITaRS fellow at Barcelona, presented a poster titled, “Meteorological applications of a continuously-operating micropulse lidar in Barcelona, Spain” at the 2016 annual meeting of the AMS. The work (Banks et al., 2015) synergizes use of a micropulse lidar (MPL), radiosoundings, and a numerical weather prediction model to study the planetary boundary layer (PBL).

In this study we showed the potential of a continuously-operating MPL for the purpose of regional mesoscale model validation and physics testing. Complementary objectives included evaluation of the PBL height diurnal cycle and an analysis of Spring 2015 PBL heights estimated from the MPL and radiosoundings.
PBL height over Barcelona shows a flat linear trend over the Spring, with an increase in heights towards late May. The largest bias of PBL heights between lidar and radiosonde are shown with regional recirculations and south-west flows. Concerning the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, non-local PBL schemes offer more accurate simulations of the PBL height.