IMPACTS OF FRACTIONAL VEGETATION COVER AND VEGETATION TYPE ON GREAT PLAINS WEATHER AND CLIMATE

Vegetation cover strongly impacts local microclimate by modulating net radiation into evaporation and sensible heat flux. The seasonal forecasts that require vegetation cover must often rely on multi-year averages. Theoretically, a more ambient (year-to-year) representation of vegetation cover may yield a more appropriate surface energy budget. The resulting alteration in the budget may also impact the pre-storm environment during the warm season and thus impact convective precipitation patterns. We shall demonstrate the impact of altering the land surface environment on weather and climate by running alternative vegetation regimes (both land use and land cover as well as fractional vegetation cover) over the Northern Great Plains and Central United States using the Weather and Research Forecast Model for several growing seasons.