Ability of NCAR RegCM2 in Reproducing the Dominant Physical Processes during the Anomalous Rainfall Episodes in the Summer of 1991 over the Yangtze-Huaihe Valley

The excessively torrential rainfall over the Yangtze-Huaihe valley during the summer of 1991 is simulated with an updated version of the second generation NCAR regional climate model (RegCM2) as a case factors contributing to the generation of the anomalous rainfall. This simulation is driven by large-scale atmospheric lateral boundary conditions derived from the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) analysis. The simulation period is May to August 1991. The model domain covers East Asia and its adjacent oceanic regions. The model resolution is 60 km × 60 km in the horizontal and 23 layers in the vertical. The model can reasonably reproduce the daily precipitation events over East Asia for the summer of 1991, especially in the Yangtze-Huaihe valley where the anomalous rainfall occurred. The spatial and temporal structure of some important physical variables and processes related to the generation of the anomalous rainfall are analyzed. The time evolution of simulated upward vertical motion and horizontal convergence agrees with the five rainfall episodes over this subregion. The water vapor feeding the rainfall is mostly transported by the horizontal atmospheric motions from outside of the region rather than from local sources. The subtropical high over the western Pacific Ocean controls the progress and retreat of the summer monsoon over East Asia, and the RegCM2 can simulate the northward migration and southward retreat of subtropical high over the western Pacific Ocean. Furthermore, the model can represent the daily variation of the low level jet, which is crucial in the water vapor transport to the Yangtze-Huaihe valley.