A study on the structure and precipitation of Morakot (2009) induced by the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan

The three-dimensional structures and ingredients leading to extremely heavy precipitation associated with the passage of Typhoon Morakot (2009) over the Central Mountain Range (CMR) of Taiwan are investigated. Using a numerical model, the track, track deflection, characteristic rainbands, and precipitation patterns and maxima are successfully reproduced after verification against observational data. The high-level outward flow of the secondary circulation around the eyewall is not very clear even during Morakot’s strongest stage. In the control case, the eyewall collapses within 5 h after landfall that is closely associated with limited precipitation along the track after landfall. During the early stage of landfall, the deep convection on the windward (west) side of the CMR helps strengthening the secondary circulation. A quantitative comparison of total precipitable water, translation speed, and orographic lifting among 12 typhoons in recent years causing large accumulated rainfall in Taiwan shows that the abundant water vapor around Taiwan outweighs translation speed and orographic lifting in resulting in the record-breaking precipitation. It is found that the major processes leading to strong upward motion in the extremely heavy precipitation during 0000 UTC 8 August–0000 UTC 9 August are initiated by orographic lifting by CMR.