The Southeasterly Gale in Tianshan Grand Canyon in Xinjiang, China: A Case Study

A severe southeasterly gale, the strongest recorded in Xinjiang over 20 years, was triggered by complex interactions between large-scale atmospheric conditions and the Tianshan Grand Canyon's topography. On June 8, 2013, wind speeds reached up to 30 m/s with gusts lasting over 24 hours, causing significant impact on Urumchi. The study reveals that topographic forcing from the Tianshan Mountains intensified the pressure gradient across the canyon, creating a critical zero-wind layer and unstable stratification. This non-linear process, activated by air currents moving through the canyon, led to the gale's formation and intensification. Numerical simulations and observations confirmed these mechanisms, providing insights into the dynamics of orographic wind events in mountainous regions.

DING, J., CHEN, Y., WANG, Y., & XU, X. (2019). The Southeasterly Gale in Tianshan Grand Canyon in Xinjiang, China: A Case Study. Journal of the Meteorological Society of Japan. Ser. II, 97(1), 55–67. https://doi.org/10.2151/jmsj.2019-002