Satellite-based Observational Study of the Tibetan Plateau Vortex: Features of Deep Convective Cloud Tops

In this study, an east-moving Tibetan Plateau vortex (TPV) is analyzed by using the ERA-5 reanalysis and multi-source satellite data, including FengYun-2E, Aqua/MODIS and CALIPSO. The objective is to demonstrate: (i) the usefulness of multi-spectral satellite observations in understanding the evolution of a TPV and the associated rainfall, and (ii) the potential significance of cloud-top quantitative information in improving Southwest China weather forecasts. Results in this study show that the heavy rainfall is caused by the coupling of an east-moving TPV and some low-level weather systems [a Plateau shear line and a Southwest Vortex (SWV)], wherein the TPV is a key component. During the TPV’s life cycle, the rainfall and vortex intensity maintain a significant positive correlation with the convective cloud-top fraction and height within a 2.5◦ radius away from its center. Moreover, its growth is found to be quite sensitive to the cloud phases and particle sizes. In the mature stage when the TPV is coupled with an SWV, an increase of small ice crystal particles and appearance of ring- and U/V-shaped cold cloud-top structures can be seen as the signature of a stronger convection and rainfall enhancement within the TPV. A tropopause folding caused by ageostrophic flows at the upper level may be a key factor in the formation of ring-shaped and U/V-shaped cloud-top structures. Based on these results, we believe that the supplementary quantitative information of an east-moving TPV cloud top collected by multi-spectral satellite observations could help to improve Southwest China short-range/nowcasting weather forecasts.