Numerical study of a coastal fog event over Casablanca, Morocco

This numerical study focuses on a dense fog event that occurred during the night of 21-22 January 2008 in the Grand Casablanca region, on the northwestern coast of Morocco. This fog event, which lasted for 15 h, is simulated by the mesoscale non-hydrostatic model Meso-NH and analyzed using conventional meteorological observations from two synoptic stations of the region, Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellite imagery and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA-Interim reanalysis. Results demonstrate that this fog event included the formation of radiation fog over a continental zone and its extension to the coastal zone through the lowering of low-stratus clouds, which is in agreement with observations and is captured well by the Meso-NH model. Sensitivity experiments show that coastal fog prediction improves with improved sea-surface temperature. Model skill also depends on the adjustment of microphysical parameters when a single-moment microphysical scheme is used, and on reliable initial conditions.