https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2019-569 Preprint. Discussion started: 23 August 2019 c Author(s) 2019. CC BY 4.0 License. A numerical modelling study of the physical mechanisms causing radiation to accelerate tropical cyclogenesis and cause diurnal cycles Melville E. Nicholls1, Warren P. Smith1, Roger A. Pielke Sr.1, Stephen M. Saleeby2 and Norman B. Wood3 5 1Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA 2Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA 3Space Science and Engineering Centre, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA 10 Correspondence to: Melville E. Nicholls (
[email protected]) Abstract. Numerical modeling studies indicate that radiative forcing can significantly accelerate tropical cyclogenesis. The primary mechanism appears to be nocturnal differential radiative forcing between a developing tropical disturbance and its relatively clear-sky surroundings. This generates weak ascent in the system core, which promotes enhanced convective activity. The goal of this study is to examine this hypothesis in more detail and in doing so shed light on the particular 15 physical mechanisms that are responsible for the accelerated development of the system. In order to clarify the effects of radiation the radiative forcing occurring in a full physics simulation is imposed as a forcing term on the thermodynamic equation in a simulation without microphysics, surface fluxes or radiation included. This gives insight into the radiatively induced circulations and the resultant changes to the temperature and moisture profiles in the system core that can influence convective development.