5 research outputs found
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Numerical predictions of the atmospheric circulations and dispersion of toxic releases in complex terrain
The South Area of Tooele Army Depot is one of the US Army`s storage facilities for its stockpile of chemical weapon agents. The Department of Defense is preparing to destroy the aging stockpiles of lethal chemical munitions, which have existed since the end of World War II. Although the danger slight, accurate predictions of the wind fields in the valley and accurate dispersion calculations are important in the event of an accident involving toxic chemicals at the depot. In order to prepare for an emergency which might involve a release of toxic agents to the atmosphere, the Higher Order Turbulence Model for Atmospheric circulations (HOTMAC) and its companion code RAndom Particle and Diffusion (RAPTAD) have been adapted for use in predicting where dangerous amounts of these chemicals may travel. Both codes have been applied to a number of air quality studies in the past, including previous dispersion studies at Tooele
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The importance of model resolution for predicting precipitation and runoff in complex terrain
As the demand for limited stores of fresh water grows, optimum use of water resources becomes paramount, especially in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. In order to make the best use of these limited resources, it is important to understand the entire hydrologic cycle in these regions and to be able to explore the potential effects of increased use and of changes in the regional climate. As part of Los Alamos' coupled environmental modeling initiative, the authors are linking a suite of environmental models to simulate the hydrologic cycle within river basins. Their goal is to produce a fully interactive coupling of atmospheric, surface hydrology, river, and groundwater models to allow feedbacks throughout the system. This paper focuses on the interaction between the atmospheric and surface hydrology models. The role of the complex topography in determining the spatial distribution of winter precipitation is investigated through sensitivity tests carried out using different horizontal resolutions in the modeling system