Mixing Depth Estimation from Operational JMA and KMAWind-Profiler Data and its Preliminary Applications: Examples from Four Selected Sites

In this study, mixed layer (ML) height information is extracted from the range-corrected signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) data of wind profilers operated by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) and the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The altitude where the maximum backscattered power is received by a wind profiler is regarded as ML height. Four sites (Kumagaya and Mito in Japan; Munsan and Gangneung in Korea) were tested on clear sky days, which were chosen using a sunshine ratio. The ML height information obtained was utilized to analyze the spatiotemporal variations of ML heights over Japan and to qualitatively evaluate the model mixing depth predicted by a KMA regional numerical weather prediction model. The frequency of the wind profiler is 1.36 GHz (1.29 GHz for sites in Korea), and the temporal resolution of the SNR data is 10 min. In the vertical, the operating resolutions are 300 m for the sites in Japan and 70 m