4.7. Predicting Tropical Cyclone Intensification
The Association of Tall Eyewall Convection with Tropical Cyclone Intensification A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at George Mason University By Owen A. Kelley Master of Science George Mason University, 1997 Bachelor of Arts St. John's College, 1993 Director: Michael Summers, Professor Department of Physics and Astronomy Spring Semester 2008 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Copyright 2008 Owen A. Kelley ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Over the past four years, a number of people have discussed with me the ideas in this dissertation. They include Tom Bell, Natalie Blades, Craig Bohren, Scott Braun, Daniel Cecil, Jeff Halverson, Bart Kelley, Genevieve Demos Kelley, John Kwiatkowski, Chris Landsea, Chuntao Liu, David Marks, Daniel Melendez, Mike McCumber, Bob Meneghini, Bill Olson, Dave Silberstein, Joanne Simpson, Erich Stocker, John Stout, and Ed Zipser. The above mentioned people do not necessarily agree with the conclusions of this dissertation, nor are they responsible for any errors. Section 3.9 contains unpublished research from a collaboration with John Stout. The TRMM Science Data and Information System (TSDIS) provided computational facilities. The dissertation was strengthened by suggestions from my adviser Michael Summers and my dissertation committee, which includes Jim Beall, Jeff Halverson, and Menas Kafatos. Various organizations and individuals provided the data used in this dissertation. NASA/JAXA/NICT provided TRMM data. Many TRMM subsets were downloaded from the JAXA Tropical Cyclone Database. NCDC provided ground radar data. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) provided world-wide best track wind intensity estimates. Scott Braun provided output from his simulation of Hurricane Bonnie (1998).
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