Improving Simulation of a Tropical Cyclone Using Dynamical Initialization and Large-Scale Spectral Nudging: A Case Study of Typhoon Megi (2010)

In this study, an approach combining dynamical initialization and large-scale spectral nudging is proposed to achieve improved numerical simulations of tropical cyclones (TCs), including track, structure, intensity, and their changes, based on the Advanced Weather Research and Forecasting (ARW-WRF) model. The effectiveness of the approach has been demonstrated with a case study of Typhoon Megi (2010). The ARW-WRF model with the proposed approach realistically reproduced many aspects of Typhoon Megi in a 7-day-long simulation. In particular, the model simulated quite well not only the storm track and intensity changes but also the structure changes before, during, and after its landfall over the Luzon Island in the northern Philippines, as well as after it reentered the ocean over the South China Sea (SCS). The results from several sensitivity experiments demonstrate that the proposed approach is quite effective and ideal for achieving realistic simulations of real TCs, and thus is useful for understanding the TC inner-core dynamics, and structure and intensity changes.