Email: pps@ucar.edu
Phone: 303-497-8953
Postal Address: P.O. Box 3000, Boulder, CO, 80307-3000
Shipping Address: 3450 Mitchell Lane, Boulder, CO, 80307-3000

Professional Interests

Dr. Sullivan's research interests are: simulations and measurements of turbulence in geophysical settings, subgrid-scale modeling, air-sea interaction, effects of surface gravity (water) waves on marine boundary layers, impacts of stratification, turbulent flow over hills, and numerical methods. He uses large-eddy and direct numerical simulations to investigate turbulent processes in both the atmospheric boundary layer and the ocean mixed layer. These turbulence simulation codes run on large parallel supercomputers. Dr. Sullivan has participated in and planned field campaigns, Horizontal Array Turbulence Study , Ocean Horizontal Array Turbulence Study, and Canopy Horizontal Array Turbulence Study focused on the measurement of subgrid scale variables in the atmosphere.

Selected Articles

Richter, D. H. & P. P. Sullivan, 2013: Sea surface drag and the role of spray. Geophysical Research Letters, accepted.

Waggy, S., S. Biringen & P. P. Sullivan, 2013: Direct simulation of top-down and bottom-up diffusion in the unstable Ekman layer. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, accepted.

Muschinski, A. & P. P. Sullivan, 2013: Using large-eddy simulation to investigate intermittency fluxes of clear-air reflectivity in the atmospheric boundary layer. IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation, Lake Buena Vista, Florida. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., L. Romero, J. C. McWilliams, & W. K. Melville, 2012: Transient evolution of Langmuir turbulence in ocean boundary layers driven by hurricane winds and waves. Journal of Physical Oceanography, 42, 1959-1980. pdf

McWilliams, J. C., E. Huckle, J-H. Liang, & P. P. Sullivan, 2012: The wavy Ekman layer: Langmuir circulations, breaking waves, and Reynolds stress. Journal of Physical Oceanography, 42, 1793-1816. pdf

Belcher, S. E., A. A. L. M. Grant, K. E. Hanley, B. Fox-Kemper, L. van Roekel, P. P. Sullivan, W. G. Large, A. Brown, A. Hines, D. Calvert, A. Rutgersson, H. Pettersson, J. Bidlot, P. A. E. M. Janssen & J. A. Polton, 2012: A global perspective on Langmuir turbulence in the ocean surface boundary layer. Geophysical Research Letters, 39, L18605. pdf

Richter, D. H. & P. P. Sullivan, 2012: Momentum transfer in a turbulent, particle-laden Couette flow. Physics of Fluids, submitted.

Suzuki, N., T. Hara & P. P. Sullivan, 2012: Impact of breaking wave form drag on near-surface turbulence and drag coefficient over young seas at high winds Journal of Physical Oceanography, accepted. pdf

Kukulka, T., A. J. Plueddemann, J. H. Trowbridge, & P.P. Sullivan, 2012: Nonlocal transport due to Langmuir circulation in a coastal ocean. Journal of Geophysical Research - Oceans, accepted.

Van Roekel, L. P., B. Fox-Kemper, P. P. Sullivan, P. E. Hamlington, & S. R. Haney, 2012: The form and orientation of Langmuir cells for misaligned winds and waves. Journal of Geophysical Research, 117, CO5001. pdf

Weil, J. C., P. P. Sullivan, E. G. Patton, & C-H. Moeng, 2012: Statistical variability of dispersion in the convective boundary layer: Ensembles of simulations and observations. Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 145, 185-210. pdf

Liang, J-H., J. C. McWilliams, P. P. Sullivan & B. Baschek, 2012: Large eddy simulation of the bubbly ocean: New insights on subsurface bubble distribution and bubble-mediated gas transfer. Journal of Geophysical Research - Oceans, 117 , C04002. pdf

Nilsson, E. O., A. Rutgersson, A. Smedman & P.P. Sullivan, 2012: Convective boundary layer structure in the presence of wind-following swell. Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, 138, 1476-1489. pdf

Kang, S-L., D. Lenschow & P. Sullivan, 2012: Effects of mesoscale surface thermal heterogeneity on low-level horizontal wind speeds. Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 143, 409-432. pdf

Lenschow, D.H., M. Lothon, S. D. Mayor, P. P. Sullivan & G. Canut, 2012: A comparison of higher-order vertical velocity moments in the convective boundary layer from lidar with in situ measurements and LES. Boundary Layer Meteorology, 143 , 107-123. pdf

Sullivan, P.P. & E. G. Patton, 2011: The effect of mesh resolution on convective boundary layer statistics and structures generated by large-eddy simulation. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 68, 2395-2415. pdf

Kukulka, T., A. J. Plueddemann, J. H. Trowbridge, & P.P. Sullivan, 2011: The influence of crosswind tidal currents on Langmuir circulation in a shallow ocean. Journal of Geophysical Research - Oceans, 116, C08005. pdf

Moeng, C-H. & P.P. Sullivan, 2011: Large Eddy Simulation. Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Sciences 2nd Edition, Eds. G. North, F. Zhang and J. Pyle. Academic Press, submitted .

Hanley, K. E., S. E. Belcher, & P.P. Sullivan, 2011: Response to ``Comments on a global climatology of wind-wave interaction". Journal of Physical Oceanography , 41, 1814-1817. pdf

Liang, J-H., J. C. McWilliams, P. P. Sullivan & B. Baschek, 2011: Modeling bubbles and dissolved gases in the ocean. Journal of Geophysical Research - Oceans, 116 , C03015. pdf

Suzuki, N., T. Hara & P. P. Sullivan, 2011: Turbulent airflow at young sea states with frequent wave breaking events: Large eddy simulation. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 68 , 1290-1305. pdf

Patton, E. T. Horst, P. Sullivan, D. Lenschow, S. Oncley, W. Brown, S. Burns, A. Guenther, A. Held, T. Karl, S. Mayor, L. Rizzo, S. Spuler, J. Sun, A. Turnipseed, E. Allwine, S. Edburg, B. Lamb, R. Avissar, R. Calhoun, J. Kleissl, W. Massman, K. Paw-U, & J. Weil, 2011: The canopy horizontal array turbulence study (CHATS). Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 92, 593-611. pdf

Sullivan, P.P. & J.C. McWilliams, 2010: Dynamics of winds and currents coupled to surface waves. Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics , 42, 19-42. pdf

Sullivan, P.P. J.C. McWilliams & T. Hristov, 2010: A large eddy simulation model of high wind marine boundary layers above a spectrum of resolved moving waves. 19th Conference on Boundary Layer and Turbulence , Keystone, CO. pdf

Mironov, D. V. & P. P. Sullivan, 2010: Effect of horizontal surface temperature heterogeneity on turbulent mixing in the stably stratified atmospheric boundary layer. 19th Conference on Boundary Layer and Turbulence , Keystone, CO. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., E.G. Patton & K.W. Ayotte, 2010: Turbulent flow over and around sinusoidal bumps, hills, gaps and craters derived from large eddy simulations. 19th Conference on Boundary Layer and Turbulence , Keystone, CO. pdf

Moeng, C.-H., P.P. Sullivan, M.F. Khairoutdinov & D.A. Randall, 2010: A mixed scheme for subgrid-scale fluxes in cloud-resolving models. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences , 67, 3692-3705. pdf

Kukulka, T., A. J. Plueddemann, J. H. Trowbridge, & P.P. Sullivan, 2010: Rapid mixed layer deepening by the combination of Langmuir and shear instabilities: A case study. Journal of Physical Oceanography , 40, 2381-2400. pdf

Hanley, K. E., S. E. Belcher, & P.P. Sullivan, 2010: A global climatology of wind-wave interaction. Journal of Physical Oceanography , 40 , 1263-1282. pdf

Nilsson, E. O., A. Rutgersson, & P.P. Sullivan, 2010: Flux attenuation due to sensor displacement over sea. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology , 27 , 856-868. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., 2009: Simulations of marine turbulence and surface waves: Potential impacts of petascale technology. Oceanography in 2025: Proceedings of a Workshop, Ocean Studies Board, The National Academies Press, 84-88. pdf

Kukulka, T., A. J. Plueddemann, J. H, Trowbridge, & P.P. Sullivan, 2009: Significance of Langmuir circulation in upper ocean mixing: Comparison of observations and simulations. Geophysical Research Letters , 36 , L10603. pdf

Kelly, M., J. C. Wyngaard & P.P. Sullivan, 2009: Application of a subfilter-scale flux model over the ocean using OHATS field data. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences , 66 , 3217-3225. pdf

Sullivan, P.P. & E.G. Patton, 2008: A highly parallel algorithm for turbulence simulations in planetary boundary layers: Results with meshes up to 10243. 18th Conference on Boundary Layer and Turbulence , Stockholm, Sweden. pdf

Jonker, H.J.J., T. Heus, & P.P. Sullivan, 2008: A refined view of vertical transport by cumulus convection. Geophysical Research Letters , 35, L07810. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J.B. Edson, T. Hristov, & J.C. McWilliams, 2008: Large eddy simulations and observations of atmospheric marine boundary layers above non-equilibrium surface waves. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 65, 1225-1245. pdf

Lin, M., C-H. Moeng, W-T. Tsai, P.P. Sullivan, & S.E. Belcher, 2008: Direct numerical simulation of wind-wave generation processes. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 616, 1-30. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J.C. McWilliams, & W.K. Melville, 2007: Catalyzing Craik-Leibovich instabilites by breaking waves. Fifth International Symposium on Environmental Hydraulics , Tempe, AZ. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J.C. McWilliams, & W.K. Melville, 2007: Surface gravity wave effects in the oceanic boundary layer: Large-eddy simulation with vortex force and stochastic breakers. J. Fluid Mechanics, 593, 405-452. pdf

Wilson, D. K., E. L. Andreas, J. W. Weatherly, C. L. Pettit, E. G. Patton, & P. P. Sullivan: 2007, Characterization of uncertainty in outdoor sound propagation predictions. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 121 (5), EL177-EL183. pdf

Beare, R. J., M. K. Macvean, A. A. M Holtslag, J. Cuxart, I. Esau, J-C. Golaz, M. A. Jimenez, M. Khairoutdinov, B. Kosovic, D. Lewellen, T. S. Lund, J. K. Lundquist, A. Maccabe, A. F. Moene, Y. Noh, S. Raasch, & P. Sullivan, 2006: An intercomparison of large-eddy simulations of the stable boundary layer. Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 118, 242-272. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J. B. Edson, T. W. Horst, J. C. Wyngaard, & M. Kelly, 2006: Subfilter scale fluxes in the marine surface layer: Results from the ocean horizontal array turbulence study (OHATS). 17th Conference on Boundary Layer and Turbulence , San Diego, CA. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J.C. McWilliams, & W.K. Melville, 2005: Surface waves and ocean mixing: Insights from numerical simulations with stochastic surface forcing. 14th Aha Hulikoa on Rogue Waves , 147-155. pdf

Patton, E. G., P. P. Sullivan, C.-H. Moeng: 2005, The influence of idealized heterogeneity on wet and dry planetary boundary layers coupled to the land surface. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 62, 2078-2097. pdf

Sullivan, P.P., J.C. McWilliams, & W.K. Melville, 2004: The oceanic boundary layer driven by wave breaking with stochastic variability. I: Direct numerical simulations. J. Fluid Mechanics, 507, 143-174. pdf

Sullivan, P.P, T.W. Horst, D.H. Lenschow, C-H. Moeng, & J.C. Weil, 2003: Structure of subfilter-scale fluxes in the atmospheric surface layer with application to large-eddy simulation modeling. J. Fluid Mech., 482, 101-139. pdf

Sullivan, P.P and J.C. McWilliams, 2002: Turbulent flow over water waves in the presence of stratification. Physics of Fluids, 14, 1182--1195. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., J. C. McWilliams, and C-H. Moeng, 2000: Simulation of turbulent flow over idealized water waves. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 404, 47-85. pdf

Saiki, E. M., C-H. Moeng, & P. P. Sullivan, 2000: Large eddy simulation of the stably stratified planetary boundary layer. Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 95, 1-30. pdf

Davis, K.J., N. Gamage, C. R. Hagelberg, C. Kiemle, D. H. Lenschow, & P. P. Sullivan, 2000: An objective method for deriving atmospheric structure from airborne lidar observations. Journal of Oceanic and Atmospheric Technology, 17, 1455-1468. pdf

McWilliams, J. C. and P. P. Sullivan, 2000: Vertical mixing by Langmuir circulations. Spill Science and Technology Bulletin, 6, 225-237. pdf

Stevens, B., C-H. Moeng, & P.P. Sullivan, 1999: Large-eddy simulation of radiatively driven convection: Sensitivities to the representation of small scales. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 56, 3963-3984. pdf

Muschinski, A., P. P. Sullivan, D. B. Wuertz, R. J. Hill, S. A. Cohn, D. H. Lenschow and R. J. Doviak, 1999: First synthesis of wind-profiler signals on the basis of large-eddy simulation data. Radio Science , 34, 1437-1459. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., C.-H. Moeng, B. Stevens, D. H. Lenschow, and S. D. Mayor, 1998: Structure of the entrainment zone capping the convective atmospheric boundary layer. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 55, 3042-3064. pdf

McWilliams, J. C., P. P. Sullivan, and C.-H. Moeng, 1997: Langmuir turbulence in the ocean. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 334, 1-30. pdf

Lin, C-L., C-H. Moeng, P.P. Sullivan, & J.C. McWilliams, 1997: The effect of surface roughness on flow structures in a neutrally stratified planetary boundary layer flow. Physics of Fluids, 9, 3235-3249. pdf

Lin, C-L., J.C. McWilliams, C-H. Moeng, & P.P. Sullivan, 1996: Coherent structures and dynamics in a neutrally stratified planetary boundary layer flow. Physics of Fluids, 8, 2626-2639. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., J. C. McWilliams, and C.-H. Moeng, 1996: A grid nesting method for large-eddy simulation of planetary boundary layer flows. Boundary-Layer Meteorology, 80, 167-202. pdf

Ayotte, K.W., P.P. Sullivan, A. Andren, S.C. Doney, A. Holtslag, W.G. Large, J.C. McWilliams, C.-H. Moeng, M. Otte, J. Tribbia, & J.C. Wyngaard, 1995: An evaluation of neutral and convective planetary boundary layer parameterizations relative to large eddy simulation. Boundary-Layer Meteorology , 79, 131-175. pdf

Sullivan, P. P., J. C. McWilliams, and C.-H. Moeng, 1994: A subgrid-scale model for large-eddy simulation of planetary boundary-layer flows. Boundary-Layer Meteorology , 71, 247-276. pdf

Moeng, C.-H., and P. P. Sullivan, 1994: A comparison of shear and buoyancy driven planetary-boundary-layer flows. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 51,999-1022. pdf

To search my complete list of publications see The NESL Publications Search or OpenSky


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