Large-eddy simulation of idealized hurricanes at different sea surface
temperatures
Abstract
Idealized hurricanes are studied at four different sea surface
temperatures (ssts) of 26°, 27°, 28°, and 29°C in six nested domains
down to 62 m grid size. For the maximum and the distribution of wind
speed, domain D6 (62 m) is similar to domain D5 (185 m) showing
convergence near 200 m. For sst of 26°, domain 5 does not have
small-scale turbulence structures like the other three cases, which is
an extension of the previous work of [2009] who only obtained
resolved gusts at 62 m. The distribution function of speed changes
between the 27° and 28° cases, the latter one having a second peak,
related to a structural change. Finally, it is suggested that the damage
potential is not simply determined by the maximum wind speed because of
the distribution change so a new damage indicator that represents
potential damage is proposed.