High resolution modelling of the extreme precipitation event over Algiers in November 2001

S. A. Moore (1) , C. Wilson (1) , S. Bell (1)

1 United Kingdom Met Office [Exeter]

Between 18:00UTC on Friday 9th November and 12:00UTC on Saturday 10th November 2001 260mm of rainfall was recorded at Bouzareah, compared to the November average of just 96mm. This extreme rainfall resulted in landslides and flooding, causing immense damage to the Bab-el-Oued district of Algiers and affected the lives of more than 2000 people. In this paper, key results from a modelling study of this event using the UK Met Office Unified Model at global (60km), regional (20km) and national (4km) horizontal resolutions are described. In general, it is found that the event could be well forecast with increases in resolution leading to better predictions of both the distribution and intensity of the rainfall. The role of the local orography and latent heating are also discussed.

Domaines: Sciences de la Terre

S. A. Moore, C. Wilson, S. Bell. High resolution modelling of the extreme precipitation event over Algiers in November 2001. Advances in Geosciences, 2005, 2, pp.139-143. ⟨hal-00296860⟩