Date of Award

5-2011

Document Type

Honors Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Department

Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences

Abstract

This paper investigates the thermodynamic and dynamic impacts of melting precipitation through a case study of an Oklahoma winter storm. On 28 January 2005 a rain and snow event affected the state of Oklahoma. A combination of radiosonde data, wind profiler data, radar imagery and Oklahoma Mesonet surface data show that latent cooling from melting caused the surface temperatures to fall in western Oklahoma while evaporation caused surface cooling in central and eastern Oklahoma. The wind and surface pressure fields in western Oklahoma are analyzed along with radar data from Frederick Air Force Base, and some limited evidence for melting-driven downdrafts is found.

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