Influence of cold fronts on microscale atmospheric conditions within the complex terrain of Watkins Glen Gorge, New York

ABSTRACT This study investigates the influence of synoptic-scale cold fronts on microclimatic conditions within the complex terrain of Watkins Glen gorge, New York. Temperature and dewpoint temperature measurements were collected by three microclimate stations both within (two stations) and just outside (one station) of the gorge during the months of September and November. A total of nine cold fronts passed over the gorge at different times of day (i.e., daytime, nighttime, and transitional) during the eight-week measurement period. During the prefrontal time periods, the two sites within the gorge were similar in both temperature and moisture content: colder and greater moisture content compared to the outside-gorge site. A stable inversion layer was present at the rim height of the gorge a large percentage of time resulting in limited mixing and a separation of the outside-gorge and inside-gorge atmospheres. Following the passage of cold fronts, there was a robust transition to a large-scale colder atmospheric air mass across the central New York region and introduction of less stable conditions that allowed intrusion and mixing of outside-gorge air within the complex terrain of Watkins Glen gorge, especially during nighttime and transitional cold fronts.