Kinetic energy budgets in areas of intense convection
A kinetic energy budget analysis of the AVE-SESAME 1 period which coincided with the deadly Red River Valley tornado outbreak is presented. Horizontal flux convergence was found to be the major kinetic energy source to the region, while cross contour destruction was the major sink. Kinetic energy transformations were dominated by processes related to strong jet intrusion into the severe storm area. A kinetic energy budget of the AVE 6 period also is presented. The effects of inherent rawinsonde data errors on widely used basic kinematic parameters, including velocity divergence, vorticity advection, and kinematic vertical motion are described. In addition, an error analysis was performed in terms of the kinetic energy budget equation. Results obtained from downward integration of the continuity equation to obtain kinematic values of vertical motion are described. This alternate procedure shows promising results in severe storm situations.