Diagnostic Study of Diabatic Heating and Kinetic Energy Budget of a Desert Depression

Alkhouly, Ahmed; Basset, Heshmat Abdel; Abdeldym, Abdallah; Morsy, Mostafa

doi:10.58675/2636-3305.1691

Diagnostic Study of Diabatic Heating and Kinetic Energy Budget of a Desert Depression

Authors

¹ Department of Astronomy and Meteorology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11884, Egypt

² Department of Astronomy and Meteorology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar UnDepartment of Astronomy and Meteorology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11884, Egyptiversity, Cairo 11884, Egypt

10.58675/2636-3305.1691

Abstract

On April 4-8, 2007, a desert depression swept across North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, bringing sweltering temperatures, fierce winds, and vast dust clouds that significantly impacted life in the region. This article gives a diagnostic investigation of this Saharan dust storm utilizing diabatic heating (DH) and kinetic energy budget in isobaric coordinates. It also looks at the connection between kinetic energy (KE) generation and DH. Horizontal temperature advection plays the dominant role throughout the depression's life cycle. While cold advection reigns supreme during the first two times, warm advection takes the lead during peak development. The term for adiabatic temperature changes and the vertical advection term have opposing effects. The contribution of the local temperature term to the change in DH is relatively minimal. All terms, excluding the local one, generally decrease in magnitude as they ascend from lower to upper layers. Interestingly, while the peak values for all other terms occur at the surface (1000 hPa), the local temperature change reaches its maximum at higher levels. The top layers contribute the most to KE. The temporal variations in the kinetic energy budget terms track the storm's life cycle. Peak intensity coincides with maximal generation, flux divergence, and dissipation, reflecting vigorous energy exchange. These terms decline during decay, mirroring the waning energy dynamics. Cross-contour flow is the key driver of KE generation, particularly during a depression's growth stage. The analysis of DH and KE generation reveals a strong association between their spatial patterns. The movement of heating or cooling regions closely mirrors the movement of zones of positive or negative generation, and both exhibit a clear connection to the depression's movement.

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