A climatological study of fog in Turkey

Abstract

In this study, climatological properties of fog types, their association with surrounding environment and background synoptic mechanisms triggering fog formation are investigated for Turkey. For this purpose, SYNOP (surface synoptic observations) and METAR (meteorological aerodrome report) codes of 105 stations are used for the period 2014-2019. While fog types are separated to the fog, quasi-fog, and dense fog events according to horizontal visibility conditions, stations are classified as mountain, seaside, urban, and rural by considering the surrounding environment. Synoptic mechanisms causing the occurrence of springtime marine fog events over Black Sea are investigated using NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis. According to the main results, highest numbers of fog events are observed during winter, spring, fall, and summer months, respectively. Radiation fog frequently occurs in the mountainous regions (i.e., central and eastern part) of Turkey during winter. As a result of the rainfall during daytime, significant amount of moisture begins to saturation at night owing to rapid cooling processes and fog layer forms just above the surface. During spring, Black Sea-effect marine fog events are frequently shown in the seaside stations of the Black Sea and northeastern Marmara regions. On the western Black Sea, winds from northeast enable rising of cold sea water to the surface (upwelling) and transfer it to the relatively warm land areas. Denser humid and cold air settling on the surface forces warm land air to rise. Additionally, warm air advection at 850 hPa (low level) creates a thick inversion layer over the region. For the eastern Black Sea, relatively cold and humid sea surface transferred to the coasts by light local northwesterly winds encounters with the mountain barrier and is trapped in the region. Furthermore, southerly winds (850 hPa) cross over the Kackar Mountains cause foehn effect and generate an inversion layer over the fog layer.