Viscous dissipation of turbulence kinetic energy in storms

In this note the magnitude of the viscous dissipation of turbulence kinetic energy in the surface layer of storms is investigated. It is shown that th e layer-integrated dissipative heating is a cubic function of the wind spee d. The magnitude of the estimated heating at higher wind speeds confirms th e importance to storm evolution of this term in the turbulence kinetic ener gy equation and suggests that dissipative energy should be included in nume rical weather prediction models, particularly in models that resolve mesosc ale structures in storms. A general discussion of the implications of the r esults for the energetics of a range of storm systems is provided.