Welcome to BLDFM’s Documentation!

The Boundary Layer Dispersion and Footprint Model (BLDFM) is a atmospheric dispersion and footprint model designed for microscale applications in the planetary boundary layer (PBL). It numerically solves the three-dimensional steady-state advection-diffusion equation in Eulerian form, providing robust tools for modeling scalar transport under various turbulent regimes.

This documentation serves as a guide to understanding, configuring, and extending BLDFM for your specific use cases. This documentation aims to be accessible to researchers, developers, or practitioners. If you spot a feature gap in BLDFM or space for improvement in the documentation, feel free to reach out with a contribution or an issue!

Key Features

• Numerical Solver: Efficiently solves the steady-state advection-diffusion equation using Fourier transforms and numerical methods like the Semi-Implicit Euler (SIE) and Exponential Integrator (EI).

• Atmospheric Stability: Computes vertical profiles of mean wind and eddy diffusivity using Monin-Obukhov Similarity Theory (MOST).

• Customizability: Easily extendable with additional turbulence closures and parameterizations.

• Validation: Tested against analytical solutions and benchmark models, ensuring accuracy and reliability.

• Example Workflows: Includes pre-configured scripts for footprint modeling and dispersion analysis.

Getting Started

To begin using BLDFM, follow these steps in the root directory of the repository:

1. Installation: Install the package using pip:

   $ pip install -e .
   

2. Run Example Scripts: Explore the example workflows in the runs subpackage:

   $ python -m runs.comparison_footprint
   

3. Dive into the Documentation: Use the navigation links below to explore the package structure, API reference, and example workflows.

Navigation

• Quickstart Guide: A step-by-step guide to installing and running BLDFM.

• Package Overview: Learn about the core modules and their interactions.

• Example Workflows: Explore pre-configured scripts in the runs subpackage.

• Test Suite: Understand how BLDFM ensures reliability through rigorous testing.

• API Reference: Detailed documentation for all core modules and functions.

About BLDFM

BLDFM is developed by Mark Schlutow, Ray Chew, and Mathias Göckede. It is licensed under the GNU License and is provided as an open-source software package to support research and development in atmospheric sciences.

For more details, visit the GitHub repository.