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The lower atmosphere over the Gulf of

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 JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 96, NO. C9, PAGES 16,877-16,896, SEPTEMBER 15, 1991

The Lower Atmosphere Over the Gulf of California

ANTOINE BADAN-DANGON, l CLIVE E. DORMAN, 2 MARK A. MERRIFIELD, 3 AND CLINTON D. WINANT 4

Automated meteorologicalobservationsat coastal and island stations, instrumented aircraft flights,

and coastal soundingswere made between July 1983and June 1985to define the variations of the lower
atmosphereover the northern half of the Gulf of California during the two important climatic seasons,
the mid-latitude winter and the subtropical summer. A marine layer is well defined over water during
both seasonsbut dissipateswithin a few kilometers inland. The winter large-scale pressure field is
dominated by the Great Basin high over the southwesternUnited States. Modulated by upper level
synoptic
activity,it causes
3 to 6 dayseventsof northwesterly
winds(8-12m s-l) directed
alongthe
gulf's axis, which are coherent over basin scales, and bring cool, dry desert air over the gulf. The
vertical scaleof these winds is 700-1000 m over land on the western side of the gulf, close to the height
of the Baja California mountains, but only 100-400 m over water, defined by the wintertime inversion.
Cross-gulf winds, related to topographic effects during upper level trough passages over Baja
California, are particularly intense in the northwestern portion of the gulf. The winter marine layer is
defined by a 1 to 4.5C temperature inversion and a dew point temperature of 6-11C(a moisture
contentof 6-8 g kg-l); weaksubsidence
reducesdewpointvaluesto -4C abovethe inversion.
Winter winds above the marine layer are coherent (0.8) across the width of the gulf. The summer
large-scale pressure field is dominated by a thermal low over the southwesternUnited States, and
drivesweak(2-5 m s-1) southeasterly
winds,alsodirectedprimarilyalongthegulf,whichareless
spatially uniform than winter winds. Air temperature and moisture content are rather constant, and
topographiceffects are absent. The summer marine layer is on the order of 200-300 m thick, with dew
pointtemperatures
of 26o-28C
(21-24g kg-1), andcapped
by a weaktemperature
inversion
(1-2C)
over water. Aloft, the dew point temperature is 17-21C,and winds are weak and uncorrelated across
the width of the Gulf. During June and early July 1984, four week-long pulses of southeasterlywinds
(10 m s-1) supportthe existence,
reportedpreviously,
of moisturesurgesfrom the gulf into the
Sonoran desert. A dynamical analysis of subdiurnal motions shows that the cross-gulf momentum
balance is geostrophic, the along-gulf balance is ageostrophic, with the along-gulf pressure gradient
opposedby friction at the surface.These resultsare consistentwith a scale analysisof the equations
of motion in the marine layer over the Gulf of California.

1. INTRODUCTION strumentedaircraft overflights and atmospheric soundingsto

examine the three-dimensional structure of the marine
The Gulf of California is a large, semienclosedsea on theboundary layer. The present communication provides an
overview of the temporal and spatial structure of the lower
subtropicaleastern Pacific Ocean. It is a region of consider-
able oceanographic and meteorological interest because of atmosphere over the Gulf of California, with emphasis on
comparingthe two important climatic seasonsin this region,
its similarity to other marginal seas, suchas the Red Sea, the
Adriatic Sea, the East China Sea, etc., its remarkable a mid-latitude winter and a subtropical summer. It is orga-
productivity, and its probable influenceon a wider geograph-nized as follows: the configuration of the Gulf of California
ical area. For example, most of the moisture for the summer and the backgroundinformation on the atmosphericcondi-
rainfall season over the greater Sonoran desert, which in- tions in this region are described in section 2. The details of
cludesportionsof northwestern Mexicoand of the south- the experiment and its sampling strategy are explained in
western United States, either originates or passes over the section 3. The fluctuations of near-surface conditions on
gulf basin [Reitan, 1957;Rasmussen, 1967]. In addition, the seasonal, synoptic, and diurnal time scales, obtained from
gulf is the only important evaporative basin of the Pacific fixed weather station observations, are examined in section
Ocean and modifies portions of the Pacific intermediate 4. The large-scalepressurefield, the air massproperties over
water mass [Sverdrup, 1941;Roden, 1958]. land and water, and the mesoscale and synoptic events that
Since November 1982 the Gulf of California has been the resultfromwinterconditions
aredescribed
in section5; the
focus of a binational investigation of the underlying dynam- correspondingsummer conditions are examined in section 6.
ics of physical processesin marginal seas. The meteorolog- We then assessthe predominant subdiurnal dynamical bal-
ical component of this study, developed from June 1983 to ances of the flow within the marine layer at synoptic scales
June 1985, included automated weather stations to obtain in section 7, and a conceptual model of the air circulation
long-term observations of near-surface conditions and in- within the marineboundarylayer over the gulf is formulated
in section 8. We summarize our results and list some
lCentrode Investigaci6n
Cientificay Educaci6nSuperiorde conclusions in section 9.
Ensenada, Ensenada, Mexico.
2Department
of Geological
Sciences,
SanDiegoStateUniversity,
San Diego, California, 2. THe SETTING
3School
of Mathematics,
Universityof New SouthWales,Kens-
ington, Australia. The Gulf of California is located in northwestern Mexico
4Scripps
Institution
of Oceanography,
La Jolla,California.
between the Baja California peninsula and the mexican
Copyright 1991 by the American Geophysical Union. mainland (Figure 1). It extends over 1500 kin, between
Paper number 91JC01433. latitudes 22N and 32N, in a northwest to southeast orien-
0148-0227/91/91JC-01433505.00 tation, and consists of a series of broadly interconnected

16,877
16,878 BADAN-DANGON
ETAL ' LOWERATMOSPHERE
OVERGULFOFCALIFORNIA

SAN DIEGO

ISLA

-GUADALUPE

IP

GU

TO

LEGEND

300 M elevation
_600Melevation
-'t'-- Sounding

0 Rainfall CLIMO

MA

Fig. 1. Thetopography
of theGulfof California
region
andthelocations
of thePAMandlandsounding
stations.
 BADAN-DANGONET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,879

JANUARY JULY
700 h Po 700 h Po
60N 60N

40 40

$20

317
20 - 20

0o I I I I I 0o I I I I I I
160*W i$0 i00 70* 160*w 130' i00 70*

SEA LEVEL SEA LEVEL

60N N

40 O*

20 0o

0o I , I I 0o
160W 130 I00 70 160W 130 I00' 70*

Fig. 2. Mean January and July pressure fields: (top) 700-hPa pressure height is decameters, adapted from Namias
[1953] and (bottom) sea level pressure in hectopascalsminus 1000, adapted from Mintz and Dean [1952].

basins, typically 200 km in width. The shallow northernmost and conditions are very stable [Reyes et al., 1984; Reyes and
basin is connected to the central Guaymas basin by a region Vogel, 1984]. An anticyclone frequently resides over the
of multiple channels and islands. The observations in this southwestern United States, causing strong southward
study were made north of the cross-gulf transect between winds over the gulf for periods of a few days [Ives, 1962]. In
Guaymas and Santa Rosal/a. the 700-hPa field (Figure 2) there is often a weak trough over
Everywhere but at its southern end, the Gulf of California Baja California. Particularly from late December through
is surroundedby elevated topography. To the west, the Baja February, a few very deep troughs will push southward
California mountains average 700 to 1000 m in elevation and acrossthe gulf, accompaniedby a minor winter rainfall peak.
effectively shield the gulf from the cool environment of the Between these strong troughs, skies are clear and the air is
Pacific Ocean. To the east and north, elevations in the Sierra stable. Winter sea surface temperatures tend to increase
Madre Occidental typically exceed 1500 m. To the north- from about 18C near the northern end of the gulf to 25C
west, the gulf region extends into the lowlands of the greater near the mouth [Robinson, 1973], except for a local mini-
Sonoran desert, which is divided by the Colorado River mum near the large islands that is due to tidally driven
valley and includes portions of northwestern Mexico, south- mixing [Badan-Dangon et al., 1985; Paden, 1990].
eastern California and southwestern Arizona. Significant During the summer, the mean surface pressure gradient
flow below 800 m is usually channeled along the gulf, and is reverses direction toward the north, with the lowest sea level
open to direct oceanic influence only from the south. The pressure located over the greater Sonoran desert (Figure 2),
Gulf of California is thus a semienclosed basin in a meteo- and mean surface winds blow from the south [Reyes et al.,
rological as well as in an oceanic sense. 1984; Reyes and Vogel, 1984]. Occasionally during the
The climate over the gulf is typically divided into two summer, tropical Pacific air surges up the gulf and over the
seasons: a mid-latitude winter and a subtropical summer United States [Hales, 1972, 1974], and a portion of the large
[Page, 1930; Roden, 1958; Mosifio, 1966; Mosifio and Gar- pool of tropical moisture present off western Mexico is
cia, 1974]. During the winter, prevailing surface winds are channeled up the gulf and over the southwestern United
from the north, along the mean pressure gradient (Figure 2) States [Reyes and Cadet, 1986]. While most of the gulf's
16,880 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.: LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

TABLE 1. Station Designations

Climatological
Station Location Island/Coast Station PAM Sounding

EM Empalme C X permanent*
GU Guaymas C X
IP Isla Piojo I X winter 1985
IR Isla Raza I X
IT Isla Tortuga I X
LA Bahia de Los Angeles C X
LO Loreto C X
LP La Paz C X
MA Mazatlfin C X
PC Punta Chivato C summer 1984
PL Puerto Libertad C X
PP Puerto Pefiasco C X X
SF San Felipe C X
SR Santa RosaIra C X X
TO Topolobampo C X

*Mexican weather station

annual rainfall occurs during the summer [Hastings and Boulder, Colorado. No station functioned continuously,
Turner, 1965], skies are generally clear, showers are iso- because the marine environment and the length of deploy-
lated, convection is suppressed,and conditions are stable. ment both exceeded design specificationsand because prob-
Summer tropical storms along the west coast of Mexico lems with the satellite link occasionallydisrupted data trans-
seldom enter the gulf region [Rosendal, 1962; Sadler, 1964; mission; the humidity sensor proved to be the most fragile
Serra, 1971]. Summer water temperatures are uniformly high element. A complete presentation of the data and details of
(29C)with the exception of the colder waters near the large their processingare given by Merrifield et al. [1987].
islands [Robinson, 1973; Badan-Dangon et al., 1985; Paden, The PAM stations were installed at six island and coastal
1990].
sites (Figure 1; Table 1), at elevations minimizing sheltering
effects. These were at 35 m on a sea wall at Puerto Pefiasco,
3. SAMPLING STRATEGY 70 m atop Isla Piojo, a small island off Bahia de Los Angeles,
Surface variables were measured with the portable auto- 10 m on flat, smooth Isla Rasa; 200 m on a bluff above Santa
mated mesonet II (PAM) meteorological station, designed Rosalia; 130 m on Isla Tortuga, a volcanic cone in the central
and deployed by the National Center for Atmospheric Re- Gulf of California; and 25 m on a rock less than 500 m from
search (NCAR). These stations consist of a 10-m-high mast the coast near Guaymas. This configuration provided cover-
on a base platform that supports the various sensors, a age near the northern and central gulf basins and in the
microprocessor and telemetry unit, and a solar panel and region of the large islands.
battery [Brock and Govind, 1977]. The stations measured Coastal soundings were made on the western side of the
wind speed and direction, air and wet bulb temperatures, gulf using an Atmospheric Instrumentation Research system
and pressure. The data were averaged over 5-min intervals, with an optical theodolite. Two soundingsper day sampled
encoded by the microprocessor unit, and telemetered over winds, air and wet bulb temperatures, and pressure at 30-m
the GOES satellite system to a reception station at NCAR in intervals to 3000-m elevation. Six more soundingsper day

m/5

ACROSS-GULF
0 m/s
WIND
-10

1010
PRESSURE
1000 hPa
990

35

TEMPERATURE
25 *C

15

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
84

Fig. 3. Time seriesof 1984along- and cross-gulfwind components,pressure, and air temperature, observed at the Isla
Tortuga PAM station. The along-gulf component correspondsto winds in the along-gulf direction (325T).
 10 m/s

325TN

PUERTO PENASCO

ISLA PIOJO

ISLA RASA

SANTA ROSALIA

ISLA TORTUGA

GUAYMAS

D d F M A M J J A S 0 N D J F M
84 85

Fig.4. Vectortimeseriesoflow-pass-filtered
windsatallthePAMstations.
Vectorspointin thedirection
thewind
is blowing,
withvectorspointingupcorresponding
to windsalongthegulfaxis(325T).

TABLE 2. Statistics of PAM Station Observations

Summer Winter

Mean Seasonal Synoptic Diurnal Synoptic Diurnal

Puerto Pehasco
u, m s-] 0.35 0.53 0.89 1.74 0.99 1.97
v, m s-] 0.60 2.30 1.92 1.54 2.59 2.09
T, C 21.02 8.21 1.42 1.60 2.03 2.53
p, hPa 4.72 2.12 1.39 3.02 1.81
Isla Piojo
u, m s-] 0.94 0.74 2.02 2.20 2.20 2.10
v, m s-] -1.47 2.05 1.98 1.92 2.21 1.75
T, C 22.16 7.16 2.17 1.57 2.24 1.55
p, hPa 4.37 1.93 1.24 2.87 1.58
Isla Rasa
-1
u, m s 0.37 0.52
-1
v, m s 1.88 1.44
T, C 1.34 1.83 1.36 0.95
p, hPa 1.71 1.20
Santa Rosala
u, m s- ] 0.11 0.28 0.65 1.45 0.86 1.69
v, m s- -0.49 1.26 0.86 1.01 1.46 1.50
T, C 22.57 6.76 1.87 1.42 2.23 1.64
p, hPa 3.36 1.63 1.09 2.24 1.31
Isla Tortuga
u, m s- 0.79 0.35 0.82 1.55 1.12 1.34
v, m s- -1.92 3.99 2.17 1.59 3.55 2.18
T, C 22.89 6.90 1.42 1.87 1.93 1.60
p, hPa 3.19 1.82 1.19 2.26 1.29
Guaymas
u, m s- 0.16 0.88 0.98 2.33 1.17 3.09
v, m s- 0.28 1.32 1.03 0.78 1.69 1.26
T, C 22.92 7.21 1.31 1.39 1.82 1.66
P, hPa 2.97 1.66 1.17 2.10 1.28

The meanandvariations
of loweratmospheric
PAM stationmeasurements
duringthe summer
(June-August)
andwinter(September-May)
seasons
overtheGulfof California.Here u andv arethe
cross-andalong-gulf
windcomponents,
rotatedtoward325TN.
Themeanandseasonal
cycleare
extractedby a leastsquares
fit of a meanandan annualharmonicto the data.Standarddeviationsfor
thesubdiurnal
anddiurnal
fluctuations
areobtained
fromthelow-passed
(halfpowerfrequency
of0.03
cpd) and band passed(0.92-1.08 cpd) filtereddata.
16,882 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

PAM WINDS were made between July 14 and August 4, 1983 [Candela et
Annal Mean al., 1984], and 21 flights were made between March 1 and 21,
al Cycle Subdiurnal
/ Fluctuations 1984 [Candela et al., 1985]. Generally, the plane flew at 80 m
PP
s-l 30 m abovethewater,with flightslasting4 to 5 hours
during the mornings and early afternoons. At least two
soundingswere made during each flight by climbing up to
1200 m at selected points, usually near the coast over
Guaymas and over Santa RosaIra, and sometimes north of
Isla Piojo in Ballenas Channel, between Baja California and
Isla Angel de la Guarda.

i 4. THE PAM OBSERVATIONS

The dominant temporal scales of surface conditions over

the Gulf of California are well described by the PAM station
observations at Isla Tortuga (Figure 3), which contain a
seasonalcycle, subdiurnal fluctuations with periods of a few
days to a few weeks, and diurnal fluctuations. We used the
Fitted to the time series nearly 1.5 years of data from the PAM stations to quantify
5 m/s
these fluctuations and to determine their degree of spatial
,.,,...........
,ttfilllllllllllllltn.
.............
,,I.m,,, Puerto Pefiasco coherenceon these three time scales. Gaps in the data series
were simply flagged and excluded from the statistics. The
\\\\\\\\\\x
...............................
''.xx
x\X\\\\\\\\\\\\ IslaPiojo seasonalsignal was extracted by least squares fitting a mean
.,,m..nltt,.,,,,,
......................................
,.,,m,.,.,,Santa Rosala and an annual harmonic to each time series [Beardsley et al.,
1987]; the subdiurnal fluctuations were then obtained by
/////11111t
applying a low-pass filter with a cutoff frequency at 0.3 cpd,
and the diurnal variations were obtained by band-pass
............///////m../,,,,.,
...........
....,,,, Guaymas
filtering in the range 0.92-1.08 cpd.
I I I I I i I I I I I I I I 1

Jan Mar May Jul Sep Nov Jan Mar

4.1. Seasonal Cycle
1984 1985

Fig. 5. Vector means and principal axis ellipses for the annual The wind field over the northern half of the gulf exhibits a
cycle and the subdiurnal wind fluctuations. The annual cycle is also definite monsoonal pattern (Figure 4)' the prevailing winds
represented at each station by a vector time series plot. switch from northwesterly during most of the year to south-
easterly during the summer from June to August. The signal
can be represented by an annual harmonic ranging in ampli-
measured wind speed and direction at 30-m intervals to 3000 tude from 1.3 to 4.0 m s-l and a mean offset of 0.3 to 2.0 m
m. A summer sounding station was operated between July 15 s-l for the along-gulfwind component(Table 2). This
and August 19, 1984, on Punta Chivato, a low promontory representation of the along-gulf seasonal wind is significant
that extends 15 km into the gulf south of Santa Rosala. A by the test suggested by Beardsley et al. [1987] at each
winter station was operated on Isla Piojo between January 18 station, with the strongest signal observed at Isla Tortuga,
and February 22, 1985. The Mexican Weather Service the station farthest from the coast. Mean winds are rather
maintains a conventional atmospheric sounding station at smaller than the fluctuations and change direction across the
Empalme, l0 km inland from Guaymas; two soundingsa day gulf, indicating that the duration of southeasterly summer
provide a measure of conditions over the eastern side of the winds is slightly longer on the eastern side of the gulf (Figure
gulf and allow some comparison with the west coast sound- 5).
ings, although these series may not resolve adequately the Seasonal heating and cooling cause large fluctuations in
light winds that are common near the surface in this region, both the temperature and pressure signals (Figure 3). Mean
particularly during the summer. air temperatures over the gulf are approximately 21to 23C,
Conditions over water were sampled directly by a twin with a seasonal range of 14 to 16C. Seasonal changes in
engine Beechcraft SuperKing Air, also operated by NCAR. pressure range from 6 to 10 hPa. The maxima of both
The aircraft measurements included wind speed and direc- temperature and pressure occur in September, and the
tion, air and dew point temperatures, surface pressure, and minima occur in January. There is also a marked seasonality
infrared sea surface temperature. Surface pressureis derived in the surface moisture content over the gulf, which is
from the pressure and temperature measured at the aircraft difficult to extract in a meaningful way from the gappy
and from the aircraft height, sensedby a radar altimeter. The humidity series, but typical dew point temperatures are 25C
surface air temperature is the ambient temperature at the (20 g kg-l) for the summerand 5C(5.5 g kg-l) for the
aircraft, adjusted adiabatically to 10-m height. The dew point winter.
temperature is the value measured at the aircraft. The wind
is the air speed and direction measured by the aircraft gust
4.2. Subdiurnal Fluctuations
sensors, corrected for the aircraft motion sensed by an
inertial navigation system. Further details about this aircraft Changes in the general seasonal pattern are most evident
system and comparisons with buoy measurements are given at subdiurnalfrequencies. In the wind field the principal axes
by Lenschow [1986] and Friehe et al. [1984]. Eighteen flights of subdiurnal fluctuations, the direction of the maximum
 BADAN-DANGON
ET AL.' LOWERATMOSPHERE
OVERGULFOFCALIFORNIA 16,883

WINTER

MODE
2

MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN
1984 1985

SUMMER

MODE 1
59%

MODE 2
19%

Mode 1---.-- I I I I I I I I I I I
MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN
1984 1985
Mode 2 .....

Fig. 6. EOF modes1 and2 spatia,

l patterns
andtemporal
expansions
for subdiurnal
PAM windsduringthewinter
(February-Mayand September-December
1984),and summer(June-August1984)seasons.

varianceincludedat those frequencies,are generallydi- and 2 hPa at subdiurnal

frequencies.
Pressurefluctuations
,

rectedalongthe gulf with standarddeviationsrangingfrom increasein amplitudetowardthe northerngulf, whichis

1.0 to 3.5 m s-l, typicallytwicethoseof the cross-gulfcloser to the path of passingsynopticfeatures, and toward
component
(Figure5). Theexception
is at IslaPibjo,where thewesternsideof thegulf,owingto theblockingeffectsof
the amplitudesof cross-gulfand along-gulfwitdsare com-
the Baja California mountains.Pressureand temperature
parablepossiblybecause,of
localizedmountainlee effects. fluctuations
arealsotypically30-50%stronger
in winterthan
Windspeedstandard deviations
are30 to 50%largerduring in summer and are strongly correlated (>0,90) between
the winterthanduring,
the SUmmer;
the strongest
wind stationsthroughout the year.
speedswere measuredduringthe winter at Isla Tortuga,the It is useful to describethe covariability of the wind field,
stationfarthestfrom the coastand most representativeof which is significantlymore structuredthan the pressureand
opengulf conditions.A comparisonof wind speedstandard temperature fields, in terms of empirical orthogonal func-
deviationsin the central gulf (Table 2) indicate that coastal tions (EOFs), in order to verify the statisticalrobustnessof
windsat SantaRosaliaandGua,masare weakerby almosta the distributionswhose originswe describebelow in the case
factor of 2 than thosea{ isla Tortuga.Inspectionof the studies.For this analysis,along- and cross-gulfwind com-
unfiltei-ed
windrecordsindicates thatwindspeedsaremore ponents are treated as scalar time series, and the winter and
comparable across the basin during the daytime hours, summerperiodsare analyzedseparately.During the winter,
probably becausethe diurnal shifts in stability over land the first two modesdescribe78% of the combinedvariability
significantlydecreasewind speedsat nightalongthe coast, andisolate
thecoherent
along-andcross-gulf
windcompo-
thus attenuatingthe subdiurnalsignal. nents(Figure 6). Mode 1 winds are directed alongthe gulf
Temperature and pressurechangesare of the order of 2C axis, includeat least 59% of the along-gulfwind varianceat
16,884 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

ISLA PIOJO ISLA RASA

SUMMER
WINTER

12
18
o
6

12
-2 -2

-4 -4

I I { I I I 1

0 2 4 -4 -2 0 2 4

PUERTO PENASCO SANTA ROSALIA

o 12

o
6 _ _
6

18

-2 -2 1218
-4 -4

I I I I I I I I

-4 -2 0 2 4 -4 -2 0 2 4

ISLA TORTUGA GUAYMAS

18
12 12

-- 12

-2 -2
18

-4 -4

-4
i

-2
1 o
oI

i

4
i

-4
i

-2 0
I

2
i

4
U (m/s) U (m/s)

Fig. 7. Average daily hodographsfor PAM station winds during the summer(June-August1984) and winter
(November 1983to May 1984and September1984to May 1985)monthsillustratingthe diurnal wind cycle.
 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.: LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,885

each station, and are strongest at Isla Tortuga. This mode is 1400 1400

associated with modulations of the Great Basin high by 1200

uaymas
1200
upper level synoptic features as we detail in section 5.1.
1000 1000
Mode 2 winds are directed across-gulf, explain at least 31%
800

ii
' WIND
SPEED
800
of the cross-gulf wind variance at each station, and are
strongest at Isla Piojo. These winds are associated with 600
-- 600

mountain lee effects during trough passagesand are the 400 400

strongest in the vicinity of Isla Piojo.

During the summer the first two modes account for 78% of
the variability, but the spatial patterns are less organized
200

0
0 4
--,--
Siilta
8
R
osal[a 12 16 20
200

0
0
WIND
DIRECTION
100 200 300
M/S DEG
than during the winter (Figure 6). Mode 1 again describesthe
dominant along-gulfwinds, but the spatial vectors vary more
in direction and the amplitude at Puerto Pefiascois relatively 1400 1400

weak, including only 25% of the variance at this station. 1200 1200

Mode 2 no longer represents strictly cross-gulf winds as it 1000 1000

does during the winter. Instead, the strongestamplitude of

this mode is at Puerto Pefiasco and suggeststhat the north-
ern and central gulf wind fields behave more independently
800 '",,,,,800 ', 600
DEW
PT.

during the summer than during the winter. The more com-
600
40O 400

plicated summer EOF patterns are probably a result of the 200 TEMPERATURE 200

weaker, shifting wind field. 0

0 4 8 12 16 20 -20 -10 0 10
oC C

4.3. Diurnal Fluctuations

Fig. 8. Aircraft soundings of wind speed and direction, air
temperature, and dew point temperature in the eastern and western
Diurnal surfacewinds over the gulf are directed primarily portions of the gulf during the strong northwesterly wind event on
-1
cross-shore, with typical standard deviations of 2 m s March 5-6, 1984.
(Table 2), and are only marginally coherent between sta-
tions, possibly reflecting the dominance of localized forcing
effects. The average diurnal cycle is illustrated with prevent cross-shore wind reversals at night, but it does
hodographsconstructed from the mean winds for each hour prevent, in most cases, along-gulf reversals of the breeze. At
of the day over both the summer and winter seasons(Figure Isla Piojo, the seasonal change in orientation of the
7). In general, the hodographsrepresent rough ellipses, with hodograph ellipse reflects the presence of strong winter
clockwise rotation probably reflecting the Coriolis force cross-gulf winds of topographic origin.
[Staley, 1957]. All hodographs show evidence of nighttime
stagnation,as is expected from the asymmetry of the thermal
5. THE WINTER
forcing [Haurwitz, 1947], with little changes in the wind
between 0200 and 0800 PST (Pacific standard time) in winter The soundingsmade at Isla Piojo in January and February
and 0200 and 0600 PST in summer. As the land warms, the 1985 indicate that during the winter the lower atmosphere is
onshore sea breeze increases to a maximum of about 4 m usually stable, no temperature inversions are found over
s-1 , generally
at around1600PST. Fromthispoint,winds land, and few rain-bearing systems pass over the Gulf of
diminishrapidly and begin to blow lightly offshoreat around California. These conditions are similar to those found at
midnight. Empalme, on the eastern side of the gulf [Reyes and Vogel,
Some departures from this regular pattern occur, particu- 1984]. Mean winter winds over Isla Piojo increase with
larly on the Baja California side of the gulf. At Isla Piojo and elevation into the strong westerlies aloft. A secondary max-
Santa Rosalia, the hodographs rotate counterclockwise, imum is observed near the base of the inversion, and there is
sometimes forming a figure eight shape, similar to that a tendency for winds to be stronger on the western side of
observed on the western side of Puget Sound and on the the gulf, possiblydue to along-gulfwind events trapped
eastern slopes of the Olympic mountains [Mass, 1982]. along the Baja California mountains.
Possible explanations include the strong effects of surface Aircraft soundings made over water 1 year earlier, in
friction, topographicsteering[Staley, 1957],or a cross-flow March 1984 [Candela et al., 1985] show a thin marine layer,
pressure gradient reaction to an accumulation of air by the too shallow to be observed in the land soundingsfrom Isla
Coriolis effect [Gleason, 1953; Frenzel, 1962]; a theoretical Piojo and Empalme, whose air mass is best indicated by a
model by Kusada and Alpert [1983] includes a rotating slight increasein moisture and is capped by a weak temper-
thermal force due to the diurnal differential heating between ature inversion of about 2C (Figure 8). The marine layer is
mountains and the sea. Winds at Isla Tortuga show maxi- typically 50 to 150 m thick, with the inversion extending to
mum easterly winds during the afternoon and are thus under 200 to 300 m, and is usually higher near Baja California,
the influence of the Baja California sea breeze regime, while consistent with a geostrophic relation of the northwesterly
diurnal winds at Isla Rasa are weak and appear decoupled winds.
from the diurnal wind cycle. The regular winter synoptic sequencein the surface winds
The seasonal shift is evident in the hodographs and is over the gulf, clearly apparent in the PAM winds recorded
therefore most pronounced at Isla Tortuga, Puerto Pefiasco, from November to March (Figure 4), consistsusually of 1 to
and Isla Piojo, and least important at Guaymas and Santa 3 days of negligible or weak southeasterly winds, followed
Rosal/a. The mean seasonal wind is not strong enough to by 1 to 2 days of cross-gulf winds and then by stronger
16,886 BADAN-DANGONET AL.' LOWERATMOSPHERE
OVERGULF OF CALIFORNIA

I I I I /

30 30 ,

177

20

700 hPa
0400 PST Sea
Level 2
10 Feb 85
10Feb
85
120 I I 0 I00 120 I I 0 100

/ /. / I I i

I If / I Ix
,.,

Ii /

30 30

247 '257 o /

Sea
Level
20

16 PST
11Feb85 086 12 Feb 85

120 I I0 I00 120 1I0 I00

Fig. 9. Sea level and 700-hPalarge-scalepressurefieldsfor February10-12, 1985.illustratingthe typicalwinter

forcingconditionsfor northwesterlywindsover the Gulf of California.The numberson sealevel chartsare sealevel
pressure, minus 1000, times 10.

northwesterly winds that last 3 to 7 days. As a specific Aircraft measurements made on March 5 and 6, 1984
example, early on February 10 a broad troughextendsfrom (Figures10 and 11;Table 3), when a similarevent occurred,
the northeast (Figure 9) and causes weak winds over the show surface winds were fairly uniform from the northwest
gulf. The Great Basin anticyclone, centered over the south- at about10to 18m s-l overthe northernhalfof thegulfand
western United States, expandsover the gulf behind a cold somewhatstrongeron the western side. On the along-gulfleg
front which has moved from the central to the southern Gulf overopenwater,changes
in winddirection
occurred
o,nlyin
by 1300 PST. This is accompanied by a short pulse of the vicinityof islands,particularlyhearthe largeIsla Angel
cross-gulf winds at Isla Piojo. As the anticyclone moves de la Guarda. Surface pressure increases steadily to the
farther south on February 11, the along-gulfpressuregradi- northin accordancewith the large-scalewinter pressurefield
ent increases to 8 hPa/1000 km, a subsidenceinversion forms forcing. The dew point temperature was close to 0C over
across thegulf,andthewindsreach10to 12m s-I fromthe water and air-sea surface temperature differences were gen-
northwest, from the surface to about the height of the Baja erally small; the air was colder than the sea surface in the
California mountains. By 1600 PST on February 12 the northerngulf owing to the advectionof cold, dry air from the
anticyclone weakens and retreats to the north as a second upper Sonorandesert. On the track taken on the fol!0wing
trough approaches; the along-gulf pressure gradient de- day between Guaymas and Santa Rosalia (Figure 11), the
creases to 4 hPa/1000 km, and winds weaken accordingly. winds remained uniform in direction, but the speed was
 BADAN-DANGONET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,887

450
flow from the west clears the ridge, accelerates as it de-
./ Puer to scends, then rises upward in a convex arch forming the
bottom of the rectangularcloud, and slows over Isla Piojo, in
, !\'
350
the configuration of a lee wave. The inversion lifted and
disappeared late on January 30 as the Great Basin anticy-
250 o,o
m,, clone extended over the gulf and the surface winds shifted to

5o .\ ' strong northwesterlies from the surface to the height of the

mountains but weakened considerably above. This was
followed by another low-pressure system approachingfrom
the west, which reduced the along-gulf pressure gradient,
50 weakened the winds, and started the sequence again.
Thus the winter pattern consistsof an alternative buildup
-50
0

-400 -300
ROsarita
l 'k,
, Amas
-200 -I00 0 I00
and weakeningof the Great Basin anticycloneby the passing
troughs. Depending on their strength and scale, short events
EAST of START km
2O
of cross-gulf winds may be generated. Along-gulf winds
16
extend to the height of the nearby mountains, whereas
cross-gulf winds extend to at least 3000 m.

6. THE SUMMER
4
WIND SPEED
0
6.1. Meteorological Conditions
1024

1022 A summary of the summer aircraft soundings (Table 4)

1020 shows that the marine layer is approximately 200-300 m
1018
1016

1014
SURFACE PRESSURE 240 .......
1012

20!.:=----
_-.-_ __ . SeaSurface
160

1ot! 0
Air
-30
80
0 1 O0 200 300 400 500 600
A EEL DISTANCE I<M a

Fig. 10. Aircraft map of the wind field and spatial plots of , Guoyme
0
various measurementson an along-gulf track during a relatively
strong northwesterly wind event on March 5, 1984.

-300
I.J_l -200 -I00
,,,'
"k',,,
-,,I ,,0 O0
greater on the western side of the gulf near Baja California, EAST of START km
and the surface pressure decreased toward the east, as can 16

be expected from geostrophy. The dew point temperature

12
increased to 5-10C, probably as the air acquired more
moisture on its overwater path. ' 8

The passage of shorter, stronger troughs can cause more 4

intense cross-gulf surface winds in the lee of the Baja

California mountains. An event of this sort began late on
0 WIND,
SPEEDi
, I ' I '
1020
January 28 after several days of weak surface winds. As a 1018
short wave trough passed over northwestern Mexico, sud-
-1 1016 '- -
den, gusty southwesterly winds in excess of 10 m s
1014
developed in about 10 min over Isla Piojo, blowing from
Sierra de la Libertad, a peak 18 km to the west. These winds
extendedto a height of at least 3000 m and persisteduntil the
1012URnACE
1010 PRESSURE
25
afternoon of January 30, when a second wave with even
fasterwindsincreased
gustsat Isla Piojoto above17m s-m.
15 AIR
20[SEA
SURFACE
........
At the start of this event, a temperature inversion formed at
2000 m over Isla Piojo and descended to 900 m early on
January 29. A spectacular rectangular lenticular wave cloud
formed over Bahia de Los Angeles and Isla Piojo from 1400 0 5[ DEW
,POINT
, , , '"' , ,
0 20 40 60 80 100 20 140 160
to 1530 PST on January 29, coinciding with the lowest levels A RELDISTANCE KM B
attained by the air temperature inversion in the soundings Fig. 11. Aircraft map of the wind field and spatial plots of
and with the height of the mountain tops to the west. The various measurements on a cross-gulf track during a relatively
local topography and the cloud form strongly suggestthat air strong northwesterly wind event on March 6, 1984.
16,888 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

TABLE 3. Winter 1984 Aircraft Soundings

Winds Inversion Dew Point, C

Maximum Height, Base, Top, AT, Above General

Date Area Speed,m/s- m m m C Surface Inversion Mid-Gulf Winds

March 1 W 3.3 48 46 278 2.2 14 -9 Weak, variable

E 7.4 57 48 240 3.6 16 -9 Weak, variable
March 2 W 5.7 101 79 236 2.0 16 -4 Weak, variable
E 2.3 197 35 240 2.8 16 -4 Weak, variable
March 3 N 2.9 26 SFC 188 3.0 9 3 Weak, variable
W 4.6 92 60 241 1.3 19 8
E 4.4 109 63 529 3.3 14 -4
March 5 N 14.6 87 ......... 3 -4 NW, strong
E 12.8 101 140 194 1.3 7 -4
March 6 W 13.2 170 186 229 0.9 7 -9 NW, strong
E 7.0 66 50 105 0.5 11 -9
March 7 W 9.6 293 216 267 0.4 7 -9 NW, strong
E 7.1 87 87 356 4.2 11 -9 Weak, variable
March 9 N 3.1 149 87 291 4.8 14 -4 Weak, variable
E 10.2 131 31 232 6.7 16 -4
March 10 E 6.4 144 37 249 4.5 16 -9 Variable
March 12 W 6.5 96 42 157 2.9 15 -4 SE
E 6.1 122 44 232 5.0 20 -9 Weak, variable
March 14 N 6.4 55 37 114 4.1 18 6 Weak, variable
E 7.4 21 SFC 232 5.4 18 -9
March 16 W 11.9 74 24 170 3.3 14 3 NW, moderate
E 10.8 70 9 302 9 17 -6
March 17 W 3.5 44 22 146 3.6 15 -4 NW, moderate
E 14.8 70 SFC 240 6.9 12 -9
March 19 W 16.7 150 87 179 0.8 10 -9 NW, strong
E 15.8 87 42 177 6.3 15 -9
March 20 N 9.4 568 61 85 0.5 -5 -9 NW, moderate
W 11.0 243 240 315 0.8 -5 -9
E 6.4 109 79 336 4.1 15 -4 Weak, variable
March 22 W 9.3 79 38 118 1.5 17 8 Weak, variable
E 4.6 59 179 280 1.0 17 10
March 23 W 12.4 76 13 66 1.7 9 -9 NW, moderate
E 6.8 511 271 433 3.6 15 -9
March 24 N 3.8 131 SFC 149 0.8 9 -4 Weak, variable
W 4.6 210 239 358 0.5 10 -4
E 10.6 83 70 275 3.5 14 -9
March 26 N 20.8 380 345 787 2.2 15 -7 SW, strong
E 5.2 63 70 243 1.4 21 6
March 27 W 9.5 50 22 74 0.6 15 10 NW, moderate
E 8.0 " 267 406 1.1 16 8

SFC, surface.

thick and is capped by an inversion that extends to 350-450 takes place in the lower atmosphereat Punta Chivato. As the
m, with an amplitude of 1-2C.Summer winds within the day develops, a constant dew point layer thickens from 500
marine layer are rather uniform in the vertical at 7 to 8 m to above 2000 m, possibly because the lower moist layer
s-I suggesting
that the effectsof surfacefrictionare not mixes convectively upward. Near saturation occurs in the
very important. The inversion tends to be higher and weaker upper moist zone as the dew point approachesthe ambient
than during the winter, reflecting the weaker summer sub- air temperature curve, which coincides with the base of the
sidence. Below 300 m, the dew point temperature is identical isolated clouds that often develop during summer days.
across the gulf, at 20 to 30C, but it is larger on the eastern When this happens,convective clouds develop over the Baja
side from 300 to 580 m and on the western side from 600 to California mountains by midmorning, a few of which de-
900 m. These cross-gulf differences in moisture above the velop into afternoon showers or thundershowers, while
inversion suggestair massesof different origins (Figure 12). conditions over the gulf remain clear.
Soundings over land made at Empalme and at Punta During the summer, a low-pressure system covers the
Chivato during July-August 1984, typically show very weak greater Sonoran desert, with the heating causing the lowest
inversions, of the order of 0.5C or less, that appear unre- sea level pressure over southeastern California, southern
lated across the gulf, which indicates that mesoscalesubsid- Nevada, or western Arizona. Farther to the south, a weak
ence is even weaker over land. Winds at Punta Chivato are high-pressuresystem is found over the central and southern
weak above 300 m and are constantly shifting direction, gulf. A mean summer up-gulf pressure gradient results,
sometimes reversing within 12 hours. They are also poorly which is modulated by weak, transient, upper level synoptic
correlated (0.3) with those at Empalme, suggestingthat the pressure systems, and thus, because of the elevated sur-
horizontal scale of the wind structure aloft is less than the rounding topography and the higher frictional drag over
width of the gulf. A distinct diurnal variation of moisture land, the preferred wind path is to the northwest over the
 BADAN-DANGONET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,889

TABLE 4. Summer 1983 Aircraft Soundings

Winds Inversion Dew Point, C

Maximum Height, Base, AT, Above General

Date Area Speed,m/s- m m Top, m C Surface Inversion Mid-Gulf Winds

July 18 N 3.8 35 SFC 92 1.1 ...... SE, moderate

W 5.7 l 01 84 265 4.2 28 l0
E 7.1 " 433 597 2.5 28 14
July 19 N 15.0 61 SFC 66 1.0 28 19 SE, moderate
W 9.5 253 236 287 0.8 28 17
E 8.7 454 401 475 0.6 28 20
July 20 W 11.2 188 591 623 1.2 27 21 SE, moderate
E 7.0 336 433 464 0.3 26 22
July 22 N 8.0 328 ......... 26 15 SE, moderate in N*
E "' " 290 338 0.8 26 20
July 25 N 8.8 240 SFC 122 2.9 18 10 Weak, variable
W 7.2 160 33 199 1.6 22 12
E 4.5 SFC 133 197 2.2 27 15
July 26 N 9.1 236 232 345 1.9 14 8 SE, moderate
W 6.9 153 446 654 2.0 29 16
E 8.2 " 234 345 1.9 23 12
July 27 N 13.3 127 101 272 1.5 29 17 SE, moderate
W 8.2 383 303 460 1.5 28 17
E 8.O 334 281 566 1.3 28 17
July 30 N 8.0 35 SFC 79 2.0 23 15 SE, moderate
W 7.9 167 469 694 0.6 28 19
E 8.8 320 327 391 1.2 27 19
Aug. 2 N 3.8 26 SFC 46 0.8 18 10 SE, moderate in N*
E 2.3 30 139 378 1.3 29 15
Aug. 3 W 7.0 167 254 413 1.1 29 19 SE, moderate
E 2.0 176 137 199 0.8 28 21
Aug. 4 N 11.2 101 167 202 0.4 26 20 SE, moderate
W 7.4 443 586 780 1.6 26 17
E 5.6 509 345 367 0.5 25 19

SFC, surface.
*Weak and variable in central gulf.

SO00 8000
gulf. The pressuremap for July 27, 1983, is typical of the
conditionsthat result in stronger southeasterlywinds over

Santa
Rosal[a
1500 1500
the northern Gulf (Figure 13). A broad ridge of pressure
extendsover the southernhalf of the gulf, and a general heat
1000 1000
low, reinforced by an upper level synoptic feature, is found

5OO
_.WIND
SPEED 500
WIND DIRECTION
over the southwestern United States and northwestern
ico. The minimum pressure, located over southernNevada,
Mex-

0
0
, 8 1:8 16 20
0
0
I

lOO 800 300

has decreasedto 1001hPa at 1300PST, the pressurediffer-
ence between Guaymas and Puerto Pefiasco has increased to
5.0 hPa, and surface winds blow rather uniformly at 8 to 11
M/S DEG
m s-1 from the southeast
over the northerngulf. As is
typicalof the summer,the air temperatureand dew point are
2000 8000 nearly constant over the gulf, and the former is about 1 to
2C warmer than the sea.
1500 1500 The aircraft survey on the same day confirms the strong
summer wind conditions (Figure 14). On the along-gulf
1000 1000 track, the wind speed increases toward the north until it
DEWPT.
diminishes abruptly off Angel de la Guarda island. The
500 500 surface pressure decreasesto the north first slowly (1 hPa
TEMPERATURE : per 200 km), then much more quickly off Angel de la Guarda
I I
0
12 16 20 24 28 32
0
0 20 30
(1.3 hPa per 100 km). Sea surface temperature decreases
oc C somewhatto the north, with smaller-scalevariability super-
posed. Over the Guaymas-Santa Rosalia transect, the vari-
Fig. 12. Aircraft soundingsof wind speedand direction, ambi-
ent temperature, and dew point temperature in the eastern and ablesare even more uniform; the air temperatureis warmer
westernportionsof the gulf duringthe moderatesoutheasterlywind than the sea on the western side but equal on the eastern
event on July 27, 1983. third of the gulf. Lee effectsof Isla Tortuga, 10 km upwind,
16,890 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.: LOWER ATMOSPHERE OVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

l56
'''" 158<b// 151

M l///196///"193 x 173 // '""-""X171

? /196
30o
. N,N,4........7
x
/9'/ .191t c
"Y / ' i97 / '207.2210 [
LO
,.
3,50
// /11192
-- 18''-.--o h -//

700
hPa
"7/'
/ '
'N,H_ ,n't 1' N'\ 211\-
; 'c--, \ / 0'90 .'-
- -- __/ '205
//-
1600PST / N,_ ,207
%,.-" 9 \
\ .
.'/5,07 / /pl92//
70hPa
/ '\,_ N> 27Ju183
-- I . r x'N,.I

I 120 l]0
I'
'"- 120 'lO
/ l

- ,. . I //' I-- 1
-- 094

--
/ 15t2;!N\
098b
'"'
081 ___/
.082.x.x/p
130x.W
k1880 130
p [, ' ' 8''009'
26'l :
20
. m .t % 088 125 / \ 149. --x 095
I
m 1560x/ . [ (Lx dlll ?118

/ /' \097 11405 axe07 t ) :190'

080
095
Sea
Level
'0'k'109
" :
076,} I/ L
,0o. 1300
25PST
Jul IX')
,o 4
83 .,..,.d b9_,
N
/A-\ [
o / 27
Jul
83
1300
"ST
' &x,,"
- \\ o066
.o o

Fig. 13. Sea level and 700-hPa large-scale pressure fields for July 25-27, 1983, illustrating the typical summer
forcing conditions for southeasterly winds over the Gulf of California. Numbers on the 700-hPa chart are the height in
meters minus 3000.

are clearly visible in most variables near the western side of gradient and southeasterly winds events to extend over the
the Gulf. central gulf.
On the other hand, pressure maps for 1300 PST, July 25 It should be noted that during both summer and winter,
(Figure 13), typify the conditions during light summer winds. considerable modifications to the general open gulf condi-
The heat low is still centered over Nevada, but upper level tions take place in Ballenas Channel, the pass between the
features observed on July 27 are absent. The minimum Baja California mountains and lsla Angel de la Guarda.
pressure is 4 hPa higher (1005 hPa) and the Guaymas-Puerto Flights through the channel show that winds are consistently
Pefiasco pressure difference has relaxed to 0.3 hPa, resulting weaker and more poorly organized. It appears that density-
in weak winds over the gulf. driven winds are of greater importance within this narrow
Hence summer sea surface winds tend to always be strong passage and cause low level winds to blow across the
and from the southwest in the northern 25 percent of the channel, with considerable alterations to the marine layer
gulf, even on low pressure gradient days. Indeed, the winds and large variations in the dew point and air temperatures.
at the Puerto Pefiasco PAM station are always southerly in
the summer, even when there are weak winds in the central
6.2. Summer Moisture Surges
gulf. We infer that the northerly pressure gradient caused by
the simple heating over the deserts of the southwestern During the early part of the 1984 summer, four pulses of
United States extends only over the northern portion of the relativelystrong(10m s-l) southeasterly
windspersisted
for
Gulf. It is the reinforcement of the thermal low by synoptic about 5 days each (June 19-25, June 27 to July 2, July 5-8,
features over the southwestern United States and northwest- and July 10-15) over most of the northern half of the gulf and
ern Mexico that causes the dominant northerly pressure were particularly visible at the island PAM stations (Figure
 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,891

2O
mas remained relatively constant during the surges (Figure
16 16), values at Yuma and Phoenix to the north rose by nearly
12 . 15-25Cduring the first wind pulse and remained close to
8 summer levels thereafter, with some fluctuations which were
4 particularly noticeable at Yuma, indicating moisture advec-
0 I I I I I I tion from the gulf. Thus the first pulse appears to have
1014 marked the transition to summer conditions over the Sono-

1012 ...---------..._ ran desert,whichwere then sustained

.bysubsequent
mois-
1010 SURFACE
PRESSURE ture surges.
1008
1006
These pulses differ from the surges of moisture over the
1004 - i i i
gulf describedby Hales [1972, 1974]becausethere are no
suddensurfacewindshiftsassociated
withtheldadingedge
35lAIR
30 ....-.,,-,....................-...- " ,.,, .....?, ................ .-.. of the pulse and the moisture transition is not abrupt but is
spread over a period of several days. Similar to Hales'
o 25 --- '
description, however, there was extensive tropical cyclone
20
{ DEW
PT. activityin the easternPacific,a troughwas presentin the
upper levels, and isolated convective activity was observed
o 5o 1O0 150 200 250 300 350
RELDISTANCE
KM B over the lower deserts during each pulse. In addition, Hales
comments that the air mass characteristics over the gulf
itself change little during surges, which is consistent with
small changesof dew point temperatures at Guaymas. Lim-
ited PAM wet bulb measurements during this period (not
shown) are similar in nature to the Guaymas dew point
temperatures. We conclude that these pulses we have ob-
served over the gulf may be weak versions of the moisture
surges.The relationshipbetweentropicalstormactivityover
the eastern North Pacific Ocean and the occurrence of
moisture surges remains unclear.

7. DYNAMICAL CONSIDERATIONS

f Islan
i6

12 Overland [1984] has presented a scale analysis of the

: 8 equations of motion for wind regimes that develop in straits
4 and along mountainous coasts in response to large-scale,
0 _ WIND
SPEED external pressure fields. We examine what local momentum
1014 - balances are likely to arise in these circumstances, with
10i2 particular attention to low Froude number scalings, when
i0i0 topographic effects are negligible and a regional response,
1008
with the flow primarily along the gulf axis, develops instead.
1006 SURFACEPRESSURE
The cross-gulf (x) and along-gulf (y) horizontal momen-
1004 I I
35 tum equations are
AIR ..... . .]
30=7
................""'~'A'
'SURFACE I Du/Dt-fv =-p-i dp/dx+ p-i dtX/dz (1)

Dv/Dt + fu = -p-1 dp/dy+ p - dtY/dz (2)

20DEW
15

10
PT. 0
I
20
I
40
I
60
I
80
I
100

120
I
140
I
I
where u and v are the cross-Gulf and along-Gulf wind
C' RELDISTANCE
KM D compoqents,
p is thepressure,
p is themeandensity,f is the
Coriolis parameter, and t x'y are the horizontal shear stress
Fig. 14. A!rcrafimap of the wind field and spatialplotsof components. Scalingsappropriate to the gulf region, listed in
various measurements on along- and cross-gulf tracks during a
moderate southeasterly wind event on July 27, 1983. The arrow Table 5, indicate that its width is comparable to the internal
indicatesthe Islfi.Tortugawake on track C-D. Rossby radius, whence the gulf may be considered for
dynamicalpurposesas an opencoast,andwe candisregard
the presenceof the mainland coast. Equations (1) and (2) can
4). During these events, air temperaturesrose slightly over then be nondimensiona!ized as
the gulf (3C), while isolated thunderstorms and showers
occurred over the more elevated areas of northwestern RL[Du/Dt+ C(u2 + v2)/2u]- v = -dp/dx - dp'/dx,
Mexico. The surface pressure field during these events was
typical of the summer (Figure 15), with a heat low over the (3)
desert and a 3- to 4-hPa pressure difference between Guay-
mas and Puerto Pefiasco. Rt[Dv/Dt+ C(u2+ v2)/2v]+ u = -dp/dy - dp'/dy
TheJune19-25pulsewasthefirstpersistent
southeasterly
wind of the season. While dew point temperature at Guay- (4)
16,892 BADAN-DANGONET AL ' LOWER ATMOSPHERE
OVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

I I

/ I 40

0%

30
a / / k / 191

2O
7 hPa

06
Sea Level
1600 PST
20 Jun 84

20"
1012
/ I /
120 110 100 10 110 I

Fig. 15. Sea level and 700 hPa pressuremapsduringthe first southeasterlywind pulseof the 1984summerseason.
The field of dew point is contouredin dashedlines. The numberson the right hand chart are the last three digitsof the
700-hPa surface height in meters.

where p is the externally prescribed large-scalepressure,p' v = dp'/dx (5)

is the perturbation pressurecausedby adjustmentwithin the
gulf, R l and R L are the cross- and along-gulf Rossby
numbers,and C9 representsan effectivedrag coefficientfor This showsthat the along-gulfflow shouldbe in geostrophic
the basin. In (3), R L is small, so the bracketed terms are balance with a cross-gulf pressure gradient that results
neglected relative to the Coriolis term. Since we have shown purely from an internal adjustment of the mass field. In
that gradients in the imposed pressure field are directed contrast,dp/dy is dominantand Rl is closeto 1 in equation
primarily along the gulfs axis, dp/dx is small and equation (4); thus the balance is ageostrophic.Furthermore, C) > 10
(3) reduces to suggeststhat friction dominatesover the remainingacceler-

3O

F-19-25
June
-t I- 27June-
2July-I 5-8-q p10-15
I'-July July-I
:5- oo \ o o
II I x_.O0

o' \ I . ooo o o o Io
oo ' : o: ' :;. ::
g. : : !:: ..
t- i : : ' :::.?;.
t_ 15- ::
..

[' 10-
.E
Guaymas
--o--

5
d: Yuma
'. o o
; 6 Phoenix .... o ....
o . .. o
0- ;

: -.!
o.o. ;
;:'
o
14 19 24 29 4 9 14 19
June July

Fig. 16. Surfacedew point temperaturesat Guaymasand northof the gulf at Yuma and Phoenix,Arizona, showing
the onset of the moist summer seasonover the Sonorandesert coincidingwith four southeasterlywind pulsesover the
Gulf of California.
 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,893

TABLE 5. Geophysical Scalingsfor the Gulf of California TABLE 6. Characteristic Momentum Equation Terms

Parameter Definition Value Characteristic

Amplitude,
-2
x, m cross-gulf
scale 105 Term ms

X, m along-gulf
scale 106
D, m verticalscale 103 dv/dt 0.34 x 10-4
V, m s-l along-gulf
wind 10 du/dt 0.15
CD dragcoefficient 1.5 X 10-3 1.55*
f, s-l Coriolis
parameter 7.2x 10
-5 Y
x 0.42*
R = V/fx cross-gulfRossbynumber 1.4 fv 2.03
RL = x:ZX
2 R along-gulf
Rossby
number 0.014 fu 0.71
Cb = X/DCD effective drag coefficient 1.5 dP/dy 3.14
dP/dx 2.10

Characteristic amplitudesof the terms in the along- and cross-gulf

ation terms in balancing the imposed pressuregradient. The momentum balances within the marine layer over the Gulf of
resultingalong-gulf momentum balance is therefore California. Wind amplitudes are from Isla Tortuga PAM station,
dp/dx is from the pressure difference between Santa RosaIra and
Guaymas, dp/dy is from the pressure difference between Guaymas
Cb(u2 + v) l/2v= -dp/dy (6) and Puerto Pefiasco.
*Assumes 250,m layer.
Both (5) and (6) imply that the along-gulf wind, or wind
stress, should be related to both the along- and cross-gulf
pressure gradients, and that u is small. acceleration terms, supporting (6). Correlations between the
Dimensional estimates of each of the terms in (2) and (3) at
along-gulf wind and the pressure gradients (Figure 17) are
subdiurnalfrequenciesare calculatedin Table 6. Only winds between 0.8 and 0.9, which is supportive of the cross-gulf
at Isla Tortuga are considered, since they are the most
geostrophicand along-gulffrictional balancesin the gulf.
representative over water and relatively free of topographic
effects. The pressure gradients are obtained from the pres-
8. THE GULF MARINE LAYER
sure differencebetween Puerto Pefiascoand Guaymas in the
along-gulf direction and between Guaymas and Santa Ro- We now propose a conceptual model of the air masses
salia across the gulf. Nonlinear terms, which involve the over the Gulf of California, emphasizing the importance of
advection of wind gradients, cannot be properly estimated the diurnal, density-driven circulation. The gulf marine layer
from widely spaced point measurementsof the wind field. air is a volume of air that extends 100 to 300 m above the gulf
Aircraft observations,however, indicate that wind gradients and very few kilometers inland. Air motions within the
are usually small over the gulf. Of the terms in (1), the marine layer are mostly parallel to the gulf's axis, except
Coriolisand pressuregradienttermsare similarin magnitude near the coastsduring daytime, when the flow turns onshore.
and larger by a factor of 10 than the local acceleration or the Perturbations to the marine layer also occur in the vicinity of
nonlinear terms, consistent with equation (5). Similarly, in islands, since even the narrowest of them have a significant
(2) the pressure gradient and friction terms are similar in wake that extends several island diameters downstream. The
magnitude and larger by a factor of 5 than any of the marine layer is also significantly eroded in Ballenas Channel,

10-

' "-"..-/':....V'-
'"... ",? "' "' v "'..?V
-10 1
Ticks are one day apart
[lllllllllllll/llll Illlllllllllllllllll Illlllllllllllllll[lllllllllllllllllllll Illllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll[lll
16Apr 30Apr 14May 28May 1! Jun 25Jun 9 Jul 23Jul 6 Aug
1984

Fig. 17. Subdiurnal time seriesof the (top) along-gulfand (bottom) cross-gulfpressuregradients (solid lines) versus
along-gulfwinds (dashedlines) at Isla Tortuga.
16,894 BADAN-DANGON ET AL.' LOWER ATMOSPHEREOVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA

SUMME R DAY (a) WINTER

DAY (b)

EITI
Very Moisture
I-
Dry Transition
Width Variable

/ ' / Dry Very Dry

-I ' AA, warm

: Very
Dry
Hot
Pacific
Marine
Lay". Pacific
Marine
Laye-"
". [ "
(very
moist,
cool) ' ,[ ' (very
moist,
cool) ": ".,. ._.,_....,,,.
....
Gulf Marine Layer
(moist,
cool)
SUMMER NIGHT
krn
Transition
Moisture - -2
WlNTER NIGHT
Width Variable
Very
Dry Very Dry

, , L Dry
PacificMarine
(very

Guedolupe
moist,
cool)
LaYe

Gulf MerineLeyer

BojeCelif Mexico
-0- _._._._._
' ' ' ,':'&
Very
Dry
'..(..
ver.(very
moist,
cool)
ymomst,c
:.,.,,. :.

I. Guadalupe BajaCalif. Mexico

Fig. 18. Conceptual model of the (a) summer and (b) winter marine layer over the Gulf of California.

possibly because the passageis narrow enough to perceive aloft is less than 6C; thus a lateral moisture transition zone
the cross-channelcirculations from both the steep slopesof of variable width must exist off the Pacific coast or over Baja
Isla Angel de la Guarda and from Baja California. California. At night the cross-shore circulation reverses
Because the marine layer is so thin in general, the air that direction and decreasesin strength;it weakens the inversion
enters the gulf quickly establishesa heat and moisture flux over the gulf, eliminating any development of convective
equilibrium. This is apparent in the small temperaturediffer- clouds over land.
encesbetween the air in the well-mixed marine layer and the The atmosphere over the gulf is much drier in the winter
rather warm sea surface. The marine layer is capped by (Figure 18b). The marine layer is thinner, on the order of 100
another air mass of drier, warmer air weakly subsidingover to 200 m, and dew point temperatureswithin the layer are 6
the entire gulf basin; a 2 to 3C temperature inversion to 11C
(6-8g km-l). Abovethemarinelayerthedewpoint
restricts the exchangebetween the two air types. Moisture temperature
of thesubsiding
air is -9 to -3C (2-3 g km-1).
distribution, a key tracer of air massesand of their motions, Geostrophy causes the marine layer to be higher on the
is sketched for summer conditions in Figure 18a. During western side of the gulf during strong northwesterly, along-
daytime, a cross-gulf circulation is set up aloft by lateral Gulf winds. The density-driven, cross-coastcirculations are
temperature differences. The cross flow is stronger on the similar to those found in the summer but are weakened by
western side because of the additional mountain slope heat- the absence of an upper moist zone or clouds. Over the
ing. This diurnal circulation along both coasts enhances Pacific Ocean, the inversion capping the marine layer is
subsidence over the gulf during the day and increases the much weaker and variable, and the marine layer itself is
strength of the inversion over the marine layer. The 200- to more easily modified. Direct transfers from the Pacific
300-m-thick marine layer has a dew point temperature of marinelayerintothegulfbasinoccurduringbriefperiodsof
26-28C. Immediately above the layer is a dry zone of strong, deep synoptic trough passages, characterized by
17-21C,capped by a thin, somewhat moister zone around strong westerly winds and no inversion. Conditions are
2000 m, related to the base of the cumulus clouds, which similar during the night, with the addition of weak offshore
form preferentially near the Baja California mountains. breezes.
Farther west, and isolated from the gulf by those same
mountains, is the moist and cool Pacific marine layer,
9. SUMMARY
capped by a strong, -10C air temperature inversion
[Neiburger et al., 1961]. The Pacific marine layer slopes During an investigation of the northern half of the Gulf of
down toward the east to a thickness of 200-400 m on the California, fixed PAM meteorologicalstations, instrumented
western side of Baja California. However, several kilome- aircraft overflights,and coastalsoundingsprovide the salient
ters offshore,the dew point temperatureof the subsidingair features of motions in the lower atmosphere. The PAM
 BADAN-DANGONET AL.: LOWERATMOSPHERE
OVER GULF OF CALIFORNIA 16,895

station time series confirm previous studies of this region, northern half of the Gulf of California compares with condi-
which indicate that two climatic seasons exist over the Gulf tions in the southern half where observations were not made.
of California: the mid-latitude winter and the subtropical During the summer, aircraft observations suggest that the
summer. wind field tends to weaken somewhat toward the central
The winter conditions are typified by dry, subsiding air gulf, and PAM winds are less correlated between the north-
and cloud free skies. The marine layer is very thin (100-200 ern and central gulf than during winter. Surface pressure
m) and is capped by a low, weak inversion (2-3C). Dew maps based on Mexican coastal stations (Guaymas, Santa
point temperatures are 6Cwithin the layer, with very dry air Rosalia, La Paz, and Mazatlfin) show near zero or even weak
(9C) above. The dominant configuration of the winter large- southward pressure gradients suggesting much weaker
scale pressure field is the extension of the southwestern winds in the southern half of the gulf. The southern gulf,
United States Great Basin high over the gulf region. Modu- however, does experience much more summer rain, mostly
lations of this pressure system by passing synoptic features from isolated thundershowers and supplemented by exten-
causeperiodsof relativelystrong(8-12 m s-), uniform sions of fading tropical disturbances. During the winter,
northwesterly flow over the northern half of the gulf. An cross-gulf lee winds do not occur in the southern gulf
EOF analysis indicates that these wind fluctuations account because the strength of the upper level troughs decreases so
for 59% of the PAM subdiurnal variability, with strongest quickly toward the south. These winds are already signifi-
amplitudes at Isla Tortuga, the station most representative of cantly diminished at Santa Rosalia. A cursory examination
open water conditions. During these northwesterly events, of reported winds at La Paz indicates that the stronger
winds below the height of the Baja California mountains are northwesterly winter wind events observed at the PAM
stronger on the western side of the gulf and are coherent stations do extend well into the southern gulf. The cold, dry
over basin scales. A local geostrophic adjustment occurs air associated with these events in the northern gulf is
within the gulf such that a cross-gulf pressure gradient rapidly modified over water, however, so as to retain signa-
balancesthe along-gulf flow. This is evident both in the PAM ture in the southern region.
observations and in the soundings,which show the marine
layer tilting downward toward the east; this is consistent
with a scale analysis of the equations of motion for the gulf Acknowledgments. Most of the field work reported here was
carried out with the support of the National Center for Atmospheric
region. Winter trough passagesnot only interrupt the Great Research and of CICESE. The aircraft surveys were done by the
Basin high and along-gulf wind events, they also cause the NCAR Research Aviation Facility, and we wish to note the support
only significant cross-gulf winds in the gulf, which last of the pilots, Pete Orum and Gill Summers, as well as of Paul
typically1-2 days.EOFs indicatethat theseeventsaccount Spyers-Duran, who saw to it that all instrumentation and data
for 18% of the PAM subdiurnal wind variance, with stron- systems functioned. The PAMII stations were designed and main-
tained by the NCAR Field Observing Facility. The support of Fred
gest amplitude at Isla Piojo, attributed to effects in the lee of Brock and Steve Summer are gratefully acknowledged. The Secre-
the mountainous Baja California peninsula. tarfa de Marina and the Secretarfia de Comunicaciones y Trans-
The summer marine layer is thicker (200-300 m), moister portes provided invaluable logistics support. This work was sup-
(dew point of 26-18C),and capped by a weaker inversion ported by the U.S. National Science Foundation (grant NSF-
OCE83-10639) and by the Secretarfa de Programaci6n y Presupuesto
(IC). Aircraft surveys show that as in the winter, the marine of Mexico.
layer fades inland within a couple of kilometers from the
coast [Candela et al., 1985]. Above the marine layer the air
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