[CF-metadata] New standard names proposal for ECPC CEOP data

From: Jonathan Gregory <j.m.gregory>
Date: Sun, 15 Jan 2006 13:02:43 +0000

Dear Alex

Thanks for your proposals. We still have some outstanding issus from Beate's
CEOP names, which have not been added to the standard name table yet. Can you
help with my questions in my posting of 1st December on "standard names for
CEOP"?

We already have:
  water_vapor_content_of_atmosphere_layer:kg m-2

OK to add:
  surface_snow_sublimation_heat_flux:W m-2
  tendency_of_atmosphere_water_vapor_content_due_to_advection:kg m-2 s-1
  enthalpy_content_of_atmosphere_layer:J m-2
  kinetic_energy_content_of_atmosphere_layer:J m-2
  eastward_atmosphere_water_vapor_transport_across_unit_distance:kg m-1 s-1
  northward_atmosphere_water_vapor_transport_across_unit_distance:kg m-1 s-1
  eastward_water_vapor_transport_across_unit_distance_in_atmosphere_layer:kg m-1 s-1
  northward_water_vapor_transport_across_unit_distance_in_atmosphere_layer:kg m-1 s-1

For these
  horizontal_enthalpy_transport_in_air:W m-2
  horizontal_geopotential_energy_transport_in_air:W m-2
  horizontal_kinetic_energy_transport_in_air:W m-2
we already have
  tendency_of_atmosphere_enthalpy_content_due_to_advection:W m-2
  tendency_of_atmosphere_potential_energy_content_due_to_advection:W m-2
  tendency_of_atmosphere_kinetic_energy_content_due_to_advection:W m-2
Are they what you want? If so, what is the difference between these and the set
  horizontal_atmosphere_enthalpy_transport:W m-2
  horizontal_atmosphere_geopotential_energy_transport:W m-2
  horizontal_atmosphere_kinetic_energy_transport:W m-2
You describe this set as "mass weighted" but I am unclear what distinction
is being made.

Modify
  potential_energy_of_atmosphere_layer:J m-2
to
  potential_energy_content_of_atmosphere_layer:J m-2

I'm not clear which "energy" is referred to in
  energy_of_atmosphere_layer:J m-2
  horizontal_energy_transport_in_air:W m-2
  horizontal_atmosphere_energy_transport:W m-2
Is it the moist energy? (See 1st December posting.)

The following come in pairs. Is the first in each pair for an atmosphere
layer? Is the shortwave absorption for upwelling or downwelling or both, the
last being the difference between incoming and outgoing TOA SW? How do you
define the longwave absorption, given that the atmosphere emits as well as
absorbing? By the energy released by convection do you mean the latent heat
released by condensation during convection (corresponding to large-scale)?
In condensation do you include freezing?
  rate_of_absorption_of_shortwave_energy:W m-2
  atmosphere_rate_of_absorption_of_shortwave_energy:W m-2
  rate_of_absorption_of_longwave_energy:W m-2
  atmosphere_rate_of_absorption_of_longwave_energy:W m-2
  rate_of_energy_released_by_deep_convection:W m-2
  atmosphere_rate_of_energy_released_by_deep_convection:W m-2
  rate_of_energy_released_by_shallow_convection:W m-2
  atmosphere_rate_of_energy_released_by_shallow_convection:W m-2
  rate_of_energy_released_by_large_scale_condensation:W m-2
  atmosphere_rate_of_energy_released_by_large_scale_condensation:W m-2
I am wondering whether we can use the word "power" in names for these
quantities instead of "rate of X" where X is a kind of energy conversion.
Power (strictly per unit area) is the correct physical term, of course, but
not often used in meteorology.

In these quantities
  baseflow_amount:kg m-2
  runoff_excluding_baseflow_amount:kg m-2
does "baseflow" mean the flow in rivers which comes from groundwater? You
define baseflow as "surface runoff plus layer runoff minus baseflow", which
seems contradictory, and the second quantity appears to exclude baseflow a
second time. I haven't grasped the distinctions you are making - could you
clarify, please?

You define both these quantities as "energy resulting from shift in
sigma-layer-definition with changing PS". What is the distinction between the
two of them? Perhaps the second is in a layer?
  atmosphere_phis:J m-2
  phis:J m-2
Is this a commonly used quantity that needs a standard name? It is obviously
a model quantity, not an observational one, but it should have a name if it
is being compared among models. However, we would need to give it a more
self-explanatory name than "phi_s". Could you please describe it in some more
detail?

You suggest "total mass" to mean the sum of dry and moist and aerosols. I
think we could call this "mass". No doubt some models will attribute mass to
the water and aerosols and others will not, but this vagueness could be useful.
Although it is consistent with other names, it doesn't sound right to refer to
the (total) mass as a "mass content". Instead of
  atmosphere_total_mass_content:kg m-2
I would propose the unusual
  atmosphere_mass_per_unit_area:kg m-2
Following other standard names, we would then have
  tendency_of_atmosphere_mass_per_unit_area_due_to_advection:kg m-2 s-1
instead of
  horizontal_total_mass_transport:kg m-2 s-1
  horizontal_atmosphere_total_mass_transport:kg m-2 s-1
What is the difference between these last two? You define them both as "mass
flux divergence". Perhaps the first is for a layer?

tendency_of_air_temperature should be in K s-1, not W m-2. We don't need a pair
of air_temperature tendency quantities to come in pairs, one with atmosphere_
and one without, since this is an intensive quantity, measured at a certain
level or averaged through a layer. I would modify your proposals to
  tendency_of_air_temperature_due_to_turbulence:K s-1
  tendency_of_atmosphere_water_vapor_content_due_to_deep_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_atmosphere_water_vapor_content_due_to_shallow_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_atmosphere_water_vapor_content_due_to_stable_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_atmosphere_water_vapor_content_due_to_turbulence:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_water_vapor_content_of_atmosphere_layer_due_to_deep_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_water_vapor_content_of_atmosphere_layer_due_to_shallow_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_water_vapor_content_of_atmosphere_layer_due_to_stable_convection:kg m-2 s-1
  tendency_of_water_vapor_content_of_atmosphere_layer_due_to_turbulence:kg m-2 s-1
Could you define what "turbulence" and "stable convection" mean, please?

Thanks for your help. Best wishes

Jonathan
Received on Sun Jan 15 2006 - 06:02:43 GMT