An Evaluation of the CONUS404 Dataset Biases During the June 29 2012 Derecho
Padilla, S., Tian, Y., Kim, J., Wolff, C.. (2026). An Evaluation of the CONUS404 Dataset Biases During the June 29 2012 Derecho. , doi:https://doi.org/10.5065/qa9v-ep93
| Title | An Evaluation of the CONUS404 Dataset Biases During the June 29 2012 Derecho |
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| Genre | Manuscript |
| Author(s) | SeanPaul Padilla, Yang Tian, Ju-Hye Kim, Cory Wolff |
| Abstract | This study aims to evaluate the performance of the 4-km resolution CONUS404 dataset, a hydrological reanalysis dataset simulated using the Weather Research and Forecasting Model (WRF), during the June 29-30, 2012, Derecho event in the central and eastern U.S. To examine the sensitivity of simulated convective environments to spatial resolution and physics suites, a 10-km horizontal resolution control (CTRL) simulation was initialized as a comparative framework against CONUS404. To validate the CONUS404 and CTRL simulation, we compared the model outputs to sounding observations that measured the environment before the MCS developed (Wilmington, OH), and during the event (Sterling, VA). Despite the local kinematic and thermodynamic discrepancies, the CTRL simulation reasonably captured the temporal evolution of the MCS development and the mean vertical profiles of temperature and water vapor. In contrast, the CONUS404 dataset depicted a significantly drier planetary boundary layer (PBL) than the CTRL, leading to a noticeable temporal delay in convective initiation. Furthermore, CONUS404 severely underestimated the low-level jet, resulting in a substantial underprediction of low-level moisture. While CONUS404 and the CTRL simulation use different PBL and microphysics schemes, these results highlight the importance of physics combinations alongside spatial resolution. In future work, we aim to eliminate resolution differences within the CTRL simulation and compare to CONUS404 as a foundational framework. |
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| Publication Date | Aug 1, 2026 |
| Publisher's Version of Record | https://doi.org/10.5065/qa9v-ep93 |
| OpenSky Citable URL | https://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d74172nq |
| OpenSky Listing | View on OpenSky |
| RAL Affiliations | WSAP |