Performance of WRF Large Eddy Simulations in Modeling the Convective Boundary Layer over the Taklimakan Desert, China

The maximum height of the convective boundary layer (CBL) over the Taklimakan Desert can exceed 5000 m during summer and plays a crucial role in the regional circulation and weather. We combined the Weather Research and Forecasting Large Eddy Simulation (WRF-LES) with data from Global Positioning System (GPS) radiosondes and from eddy covariance stations to evaluate the performance of the WRF-LES in simulating the characteristics of the deep CBL over the central Taklimakan Desert. The model reproduced the evolution of the CBL processes reasonably well, but the simulations generated warmer and moister conditions than the observation as a result of the over-prediction of surface fluxes and large-scale advection. Further simulations were performed with multiple configurations and sensitivity tests. The sensitivity tests for the lateral boundary conditions (LBCs) showed that the model results are sensitive to changes in the time resolution and domain size of the specified LBCs. A larger domain size varies the distance of the area of interest from the LBCs and reduces the influence of large forecast errors near the LBCs. Comparing the model results using the original parameterization of sensible heat flux with the Noah land surface scheme and those of the sensitivity experiments showed that the desert CBL is sensitive to the sensible heat flux produced by the land surface scheme during daytime in summer. A reduction in the sensible heat flux can correct overestimates of the potential temperature profile. However, increasing the sensible heat flux significantly reduces the total time needed to increase the CBL to a relatively low altitude (< 3 km) in the middle and initial stages of the development of the CBL rather than producing a higher CBL in the later stages.