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Revealing the Evolution and Small-Scale Variability of the Morning Transition Phase in the atmospheric boundary layer using Distributed Temperature Sensing
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  • Antonia M Fritz,
  • Karl E. Lapo,
  • Anita Freundorfer,
  • Tobias Linhardt,
  • Christoph K Thomas
Antonia M Fritz
University of Bayreuth, University of Bayreuth
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Karl E. Lapo
University of Bayreuth, University of Bayreuth
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Anita Freundorfer
University of Bayreuth, University of Bayreuth
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Tobias Linhardt
University of Bayreuth, University of Bayreuth
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Christoph K Thomas
University of Bayreuth, University of Bayreuth

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Abstract

During the morning transition, the nocturnal stable boundary layer, SBL, turns into the daytime convective boundary layer, making it an important phase for modelling and predicting temperature or pollutant distributions. By applying distributed temperature sensing suspended from a tethered balloon (0-200m height) and along a measurement tower (0-11m), for the first time we observed the detailed evolution of three complete morning transition phases with a high temporal (<10s) and spatial (<0.25m) resolution. Using distributed observations, the transition can be derived solely from a change in spatially continuous observations of static stability. It was validated that the transition occurs at the top and the bottom of the SBL simultaneously and advection of heat was identified as a main driver in addition to local surface warming. The transition is characterized by complex structures and small-scale variability, highlighting how distributed temperature sensing is a crucial tool for future research.