HORIZONTAL RESOLUTION IN MESOSCALE WIND MODELLING: RELATION WITH COMPLEX TOPOGRAPHY

The purpose of this study is to analyze the behavior of the mesoscale model regarding the taken horizontal resolution. The results for each resolution are compared with data recorded in the different met towers located in the region of interest. The weather of the southeast of Spain is characterized by the synoptic scale and the local effects, mainly, the influence of the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea and the local topography. In this study, one year of numerical mesoscale simulation over this area has been made with different horizontal resolutions. The data obtained from the simulation have been compared with the ones recorded at the meteorological masts, located in a valley centered in the simulation area. The simulation with coarse resolution cannot reproduce the different physical effects that occur in the valley. However, higher horizontal resolutions allow a better representation of the local effects.