Regional scale evaporation and the atmospheric boundary layer

Authors:
  • MPMarc B. Parlange
    Marc B. Parlange
  • WEWilliam E. Eichinger
    William E. Eichinger
  • JAJohn D. Albertson
    John D. Albertson
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Abstract
Evaporation into the atmosphere is fundamental to the fields of hydrology, meteorology, and climatology. With evolving interest in regional and global hydrologic processes there is an increasing recognition of the importance of the study of evaporation and land surface water balances for length scales of the order of 10 km. To obtain regional scale fluxes of water vapor, heat, and momentum, it is important to understand transport in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), which is defined to be that part of the atmosphere directly influenced by the land surface. In this review we briefly summarize some current models of evaporation and the ABL and discuss new experimental and computational opportunities that may aid our understanding of evaporation at these larger scales. In particular, consideration is given to remote sensing of the atmosphere, computational fluid dynamics and the role numerical models can play in understanding land‐atmosphere interaction. These powerful modeling and measurement tools are allowing us to visualize and study spatial and temporal scales previously untouched, thereby increasing the opportunities to improve our understanding of land‐atmosphere interaction.

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