Numerical Modelling of the Extratropical Storm Delta Over Canary Islands: Importance of High Resolution - Selected Topics of Computational and Experimental Fluid Mechanics - page 140

Fig. 6 Patterns at three different resolutions with ( left ) and without ( right ) topography
4 Conclusions
An unusual synoptic situation affected the Canary Islands from November 28 to
November 30, 2005 provoking the Delta extratropical storm. The high-resolution
simulation using the WRF model has outlined the main features that contribute to
the high wind speeds observed in the archipelago of Canary Islands. The presence of
the warm core at 850hPa, near the top of higher mountain peaks and the variations
in vertical static stability and important vertical wind shear were the main char-
acteristics that contributed to the development and amplification of intense gravity
waves leeward of the major mountain barriers of the western islands of the Canary
archipelago that leads to the development of downslope windstorms.
The comparisons with surface observations indicate that the mesoscale model
provides a reasonably good performance of the local effects produced in the com-
plex islands orography. The model results may contribute to reinforce the idea that
downslope windstorms associated with mountain wave activity developed when the