Air Quality ModellingWRF, CALMET and MICROMETEO models
Meteorological modelling is an essential tool for describing the evolution of the atmosphere and providing useful information for environmental management, civil protection and forecasting applications. By reconstructing the meteorological field at different scales, it makes it possible to obtain coherent, high-resolution datasets needed to interpret atmospheric phenomena (as input for air quality models) and support technical decisions.
TerrAria uses consolidated models such as WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) and CALMET, selected to ensure reliable results both in diagnostic contexts and in forecasting applications. The WRF model is used to simulate three-dimensional meteorological fields at regional or local scale, with nested domains and the ability to capture complex phenomena such as breeze circulations, thermal inversions, intense precipitation events or critical episodes useful for civil protection. The fields simulated by WRF form the basis for scenario analyses, environmental assessments and land management applications.
For more local-scale contexts, TerrAria uses CALMET, a diagnostic model capable of merging observational data, modelled fields and orographic information, producing a high-resolution three-dimensional meteorological framework. CALMET is particularly important for generating input for air quality models (CALPUFF), as it provides variables such as wind fields, atmospheric stability, mixing and parameters essential for pollutant dispersion modelling.
Alongside these tools, TerrAria has developed the MICROMETEO meteorological pre-processor, designed to produce specific inputs for dispersion models, perform temporal interpolation of missing data and estimate micro-meteorological parameters such as stability class, mixing layer height and turbulence indicators.
Meteorological modelling has also been integrated into air quality platforms, where wind fields, atmospheric variables and meteorological simulations feed forecasting and diagnostic models, enabling accurate assessments of emission impacts and pollutant dynamics.
