Formation of African easterly waves and mesoscale convective systems over eastern Africa and its implication to tropical cyclogenesis over eastern Atlantic Ocean

The formation of African easterly waves and mesoscale convective systems in eastern North Africa and its impacts on the tropical cyclogenesis over the eastern Atlantic Ocean is studied. Based on numerical simulations, AEWs can be produced by vortex shedding from the EH. The lee vortex is generated mainly by the blocking of the EH and helped by the horizontal shear associated with the northeasterly wind and the jet passing through the Turkana channel. The MCS was originated from the moist convection over the EH triggered by diurnal sensible heating. When the MCS moved to the lee of the mountain, it merged with the lee vortex of the AEW train and formed the coupled AEW-MCS system. Numerical simulations of a regional climate model indicate that the simulated fields do possess the AEW characteristics and the convection was generated over the EH, and the pre-Alberto AEW-MCS system was generated near the lee of the EH. Finer-resolution numerical simulations demonstrate that the vortex generated on the lee and MCS over the mountain eventually merge and become an AEW-MCS system which might serve as a precursor of tropical cyclone. © 2009 American Institute of Physics.