Measurement of Total Eclipse Impact on Surface Layer Turbulence and Boundary Layer Structure

Measurement of Total Eclipse Impact on Surface Layer Turbulence and Boundary Layer Structure | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Measurement of Total Eclipse Impact on Surface Layer Turbulence and Boundary Layer Structure Sean C. C. Bailey, Christina N. Hisle, Tracy L. Knowles, James W. Morris, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8308788/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines measurements of the atmospheric boundary layer response to rapid changes in surface forcing during the total solar eclipse of 8 April 2024 using coordinated surface, uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), and radiosonde observations. Measurements capture the evolution of the surface energy balance and associated changes in wind, temperature, humidity, and turbulence from the surface to 4000 m above ground level. The rapid reduction in solar radiation led to a collapse of buoyant turbulence production, followed by the formation of a shallow post-eclipse stable layer shortly after totality. This stable layer persisted for approximately 45 minutes and was maintained by surface heat loss through net longwave radiation and conduction into the soil. Its development strongly suppressed turbulence, producing reduced wind speeds and pronounced wind-direction rotation as near-surface flow decoupled from the air aloft, with turbulence decay observed both near the surface and within the surface layer. Suppressed vertical mixing reduced the transport of moisture and heat away from the surface and was accompanied by a temporary reduction in boundary layer height and the development of residual stratification aloft. These observations provide a detailed view of transient boundary layer collapse and recovery under extreme, short-duration radiative forcing. Solar Eclipse Stable Boundary Layer Turbulence Suppression Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 06 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 06 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 06 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 16 Dec, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Dec, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Dec, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 09 Dec, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 09 Dec, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 09 Dec, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 09 Dec, 2025 First submitted to journal 08 Dec, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8308788","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":558416672,"identity":"cb7f5b4e-f76a-48c0-9788-a0f781681ef7","order_by":0,"name":"Sean C. C. 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