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Anthropogenic Aerosols Effects on Ice Clouds: A Review. ATMOSPHERE 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/atmos13060910] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Since the ability of anthropogenic aerosols to act as ice nucleation particles has been recognized, the effect of anthropogenic aerosols on ice clouds has attracted increasing attentions. In recent years, some progress has been made in investigating the effects of anthropogenic aerosols on ice clouds. In this paper, we briefly review the study on the impact of anthropogenic aerosols on ice nuclei, properties and radiative forcing of ice clouds. Anthropogenic aerosols can form ice nuclei through homogeneous nucleation and heterogeneous nucleation. Convective strength can modulate the response of ice clouds to anthropogenic aerosols by affecting the nucleation activities. There have been large uncertainties in calculating the radiative forcing of anthropogenic aerosols on ice clouds in climate models. Further studies on the impact of anthropogenic aerosols on ice clouds are imperative to provide better parameterization schemes and reduce the uncertainties of aerosol indirect effects.
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2
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McGraw Z, Storelvmo T, Samset BH, Stjern CW. Global Radiative Impacts of Black Carbon Acting as Ice Nucleating Particles. GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS 2020; 47:e2020GL089056. [PMID: 33380757 PMCID: PMC7757207 DOI: 10.1029/2020gl089056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Revised: 09/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Black carbon (BC) aerosols from incomplete combustion generally warm the climate, but the magnitudes of their various interactions with climate are still uncertain. A key knowledge gap is their role as ice nucleating particles (INPs), enabling ice formation in clouds. Here we assess the global radiative impacts of BC acting as INPs, using simulations with the Community Earth System Model 2 climate model updated to include new laboratory-based ice nucleation parameterizations. Overall, we find a moderate cooling through changes to stratiform cirrus clouds, counteracting the well-known net warming from BC's direct scattering and absorption of radiation. Our best estimates indicate that BC INPs generally thin cirrus by indirectly inhibiting the freezing of solution aerosol, with a global net radiative impact of -0.13 ± 0.07 W/m2. Sensitivity tests of BC amounts and ice nucleating efficiencies, and uncertainties in the environment where ice crystals form, show a potential range of impacts from -0.30 to +0.02 W/m2.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Camilla Weum Stjern
- Center for International Climate and Environmental Research‐Oslo (CICERO)OsloNorway
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3
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Morrison H, van Lier‐Walqui M, Fridlind AM, Grabowski WW, Harrington JY, Hoose C, Korolev A, Kumjian MR, Milbrandt JA, Pawlowska H, Posselt DJ, Prat OP, Reimel KJ, Shima S, van Diedenhoven B, Xue L. Confronting the Challenge of Modeling Cloud and Precipitation Microphysics. JOURNAL OF ADVANCES IN MODELING EARTH SYSTEMS 2020; 12:e2019MS001689. [PMID: 32999700 PMCID: PMC7507216 DOI: 10.1029/2019ms001689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2019] [Revised: 05/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/05/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
In the atmosphere, microphysics refers to the microscale processes that affect cloud and precipitation particles and is a key linkage among the various components of Earth's atmospheric water and energy cycles. The representation of microphysical processes in models continues to pose a major challenge leading to uncertainty in numerical weather forecasts and climate simulations. In this paper, the problem of treating microphysics in models is divided into two parts: (i) how to represent the population of cloud and precipitation particles, given the impossibility of simulating all particles individually within a cloud, and (ii) uncertainties in the microphysical process rates owing to fundamental gaps in knowledge of cloud physics. The recently developed Lagrangian particle-based method is advocated as a way to address several conceptual and practical challenges of representing particle populations using traditional bulk and bin microphysics parameterization schemes. For addressing critical gaps in cloud physics knowledge, sustained investment for observational advances from laboratory experiments, new probe development, and next-generation instruments in space is needed. Greater emphasis on laboratory work, which has apparently declined over the past several decades relative to other areas of cloud physics research, is argued to be an essential ingredient for improving process-level understanding. More systematic use of natural cloud and precipitation observations to constrain microphysics schemes is also advocated. Because it is generally difficult to quantify individual microphysical process rates from these observations directly, this presents an inverse problem that can be viewed from the standpoint of Bayesian statistics. Following this idea, a probabilistic framework is proposed that combines elements from statistical and physical modeling. Besides providing rigorous constraint of schemes, there is an added benefit of quantifying uncertainty systematically. Finally, a broader hierarchical approach is proposed to accelerate improvements in microphysics schemes, leveraging the advances described in this paper related to process modeling (using Lagrangian particle-based schemes), laboratory experimentation, cloud and precipitation observations, and statistical methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hugh Morrison
- National Center for Atmospheric ResearchBoulderCOUSA
| | - Marcus van Lier‐Walqui
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Center for Climate Systems ResearchColumbia UniversityNew YorkNYUSA
| | | | | | - Jerry Y. Harrington
- Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric ScienceThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPAUSA
| | - Corinna Hoose
- Institute of Meteorology and Climate ResearchKarlsruhe Institute of TechnologyKarlsruheGermany
| | - Alexei Korolev
- Observation Based Research SectionEnvironment and Climate Change CanadaTorontoOntarioCanada
| | - Matthew R. Kumjian
- Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric ScienceThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPAUSA
| | - Jason A. Milbrandt
- Atmospheric Numerical Prediction ResearchEnvironment and Climate Change CanadaDorvalQuebecCanada
| | - Hanna Pawlowska
- Institute of Geophysics, Faculty of PhysicsUniversity of WarsawWarsawPoland
| | - Derek J. Posselt
- Jet Propulsion LaboratoryCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCAUSA
| | - Olivier P. Prat
- North Carolina Institute for Climate StudiesNorth Carolina State UniversityAshevilleNCUSA
| | - Karly J. Reimel
- Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric ScienceThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPAUSA
| | - Shin‐Ichiro Shima
- University of Hyogo and RIKEN Center for Computational ScienceKobeJapan
| | - Bastiaan van Diedenhoven
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Center for Climate Systems ResearchColumbia UniversityNew YorkNYUSA
| | - Lulin Xue
- National Center for Atmospheric ResearchBoulderCOUSA
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4
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Joghataei M, Ostovari F, Atabakhsh S, Tobeiha N. Heterogeneous Ice Nucleation by Graphene Nanoparticles. Sci Rep 2020; 10:9723. [PMID: 32546729 PMCID: PMC7298023 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-66714-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2019] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Nanostructure, chemical composition and size distribution of aerosols have prime important effects on their efficiency in heterogeneous ice nucleation (HIN). The ice nucleation usually requires active sites in the aerosols in order to act as ice nuclei (IN). In this study, HIN and probable active sites of the graphene-graphene oxide nanoparticles (GGON), obtained from graphite oxide by low temperature thermal shock (LTTS), were investigated. Characteristics and size distribution of the GGON were identified using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and image processing of the results, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectra and X-ray diffraction (XRD) of their sheets. The FTIR spectra indicate stronger carbon-oxygen bonds in the samples obtained by LTTS. In addition, maximum size distribution of the GGON was ranged around 160-180 nm. After introducing these particles in the cloud chamber, HIN has occurred and ice crystals were formed. Size distribution of crystals were obtained from image processing of the plates, where covered by a thin layer of Formvar, showed the number of ice crystals in the GGON were increased as temperature increased from -20 °C to -10 °C. In addition, two possible mechanisms of asymmetry and deformation in ice crystals of the GGON were described.
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5
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Bellouin N, Quaas J, Gryspeerdt E, Kinne S, Stier P, Watson‐Parris D, Boucher O, Carslaw KS, Christensen M, Daniau A, Dufresne J, Feingold G, Fiedler S, Forster P, Gettelman A, Haywood JM, Lohmann U, Malavelle F, Mauritsen T, McCoy DT, Myhre G, Mülmenstädt J, Neubauer D, Possner A, Rugenstein M, Sato Y, Schulz M, Schwartz SE, Sourdeval O, Storelvmo T, Toll V, Winker D, Stevens B. Bounding Global Aerosol Radiative Forcing of Climate Change. REVIEWS OF GEOPHYSICS (WASHINGTON, D.C. : 1985) 2020; 58:e2019RG000660. [PMID: 32734279 PMCID: PMC7384191 DOI: 10.1029/2019rg000660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/03/2019] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Aerosols interact with radiation and clouds. Substantial progress made over the past 40 years in observing, understanding, and modeling these processes helped quantify the imbalance in the Earth's radiation budget caused by anthropogenic aerosols, called aerosol radiative forcing, but uncertainties remain large. This review provides a new range of aerosol radiative forcing over the industrial era based on multiple, traceable, and arguable lines of evidence, including modeling approaches, theoretical considerations, and observations. Improved understanding of aerosol absorption and the causes of trends in surface radiative fluxes constrain the forcing from aerosol-radiation interactions. A robust theoretical foundation and convincing evidence constrain the forcing caused by aerosol-driven increases in liquid cloud droplet number concentration. However, the influence of anthropogenic aerosols on cloud liquid water content and cloud fraction is less clear, and the influence on mixed-phase and ice clouds remains poorly constrained. Observed changes in surface temperature and radiative fluxes provide additional constraints. These multiple lines of evidence lead to a 68% confidence interval for the total aerosol effective radiative forcing of -1.6 to -0.6 W m-2, or -2.0 to -0.4 W m-2 with a 90% likelihood. Those intervals are of similar width to the last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment but shifted toward more negative values. The uncertainty will narrow in the future by continuing to critically combine multiple lines of evidence, especially those addressing industrial-era changes in aerosol sources and aerosol effects on liquid cloud amount and on ice clouds.
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Affiliation(s)
- N. Bellouin
- Department of MeteorologyUniversity of ReadingReadingUK
| | - J. Quaas
- Institute for MeteorologyUniversität LeipzigLeipzigGermany
| | - E. Gryspeerdt
- Space and Atmospheric Physics GroupImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - S. Kinne
- Max Planck Institute for MeteorologyHamburgGermany
| | - P. Stier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of PhysicsUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - D. Watson‐Parris
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of PhysicsUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - O. Boucher
- Institut Pierre‐Simon Laplace, Sorbonne Université/CNRSParisFrance
| | - K. S. Carslaw
- School of Earth and EnvironmentUniversity of LeedsLeedsUK
| | - M. Christensen
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of PhysicsUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - A.‐L. Daniau
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS‐Université de BordeauxPessacFrance
| | - J.‐L. Dufresne
- Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique/IPSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Ecole PolytechniqueParisFrance
| | - G. Feingold
- NOAA ESRL Chemical Sciences DivisionBoulderCOUSA
| | - S. Fiedler
- Max Planck Institute for MeteorologyHamburgGermany
- Now at Institut für Geophysik und MeteorologieUniversität zu KölnKölnGermany
| | - P. Forster
- Priestley International Centre for ClimateUniversity of LeedsLeedsUK
| | - A. Gettelman
- National Center for Atmospheric ResearchBoulderCOUSA
| | - J. M. Haywood
- CEMPSUniversity of ExeterExeterUK
- UK Met Office Hadley CentreExeterUK
| | - U. Lohmann
- Institute for Atmospheric and Climate ScienceETH ZürichZürichSwitzerland
| | | | - T. Mauritsen
- Department of MeteorologyStockholm UniversityStockholmSweden
| | - D. T. McCoy
- School of Earth and EnvironmentUniversity of LeedsLeedsUK
| | - G. Myhre
- Center for International Climate and Environmental Research‐Oslo (CICERO)OsloNorway
| | - J. Mülmenstädt
- Institute for MeteorologyUniversität LeipzigLeipzigGermany
| | - D. Neubauer
- Institute for Atmospheric and Climate ScienceETH ZürichZürichSwitzerland
| | - A. Possner
- Department of Global EcologyCarnegie Institution for ScienceStanfordCAUSA
- Now at Institute for Atmospheric and Environmental SciencesGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
| | | | - Y. Sato
- Department of Applied Energy, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya UniversityNagoyaJapan
- Now at Faculty of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary SciencesHokkaido UniversitySapporoJapan
| | - M. Schulz
- Climate Modelling and Air Pollution Section, Research and Development DepartmentNorwegian Meteorological InstituteOsloNorway
| | - S. E. Schwartz
- Brookhaven National Laboratory Environmental and Climate Sciences DepartmentUptonNYUSA
| | - O. Sourdeval
- Institute for MeteorologyUniversität LeipzigLeipzigGermany
- Laboratoire d'Optique AtmosphériqueUniversité de LilleVilleneuve d'AscqFrance
| | - T. Storelvmo
- Department of GeosciencesUniversity of OsloOsloNorway
| | - V. Toll
- Department of MeteorologyUniversity of ReadingReadingUK
- Now at Institute of PhysicsUniversity of TartuTartuEstonia
| | - D. Winker
- NASA Langley Research CenterHamptonVAUSA
| | - B. Stevens
- Max Planck Institute for MeteorologyHamburgGermany
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6
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Gryspeerdt E, Mülmenstädt J, Gettelman A, Malavelle FF, Morrison H, Neubauer D, Partridge DG, Stier P, Takemura T, Wang H, Wang M, Zhang K. Surprising similarities in model and observational aerosol radiative forcing estimates. ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS 2020; 20:613-623. [PMID: 33204244 PMCID: PMC7668122 DOI: 10.5194/acp-20-613-2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The radiative forcing from aerosols (particularly through their interaction with clouds) remains one of the most uncertain components of the human forcing of the climate. Observation-based studies have typically found a smaller aerosol effective radiative forcing than in model simulations and were given preferential weighting in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5). With their own sources of uncertainty, it is not clear that observation-based estimates are more reliable. Understanding the source of the model and observational differences is thus vital to reduce uncertainty in the impact of aerosols on the climate. These reported discrepancies arise from the different methods of separating the components of aerosol forcing used in model and observational studies. Applying the observational decomposition to global climate model (GCM) output, the two different lines of evidence are surprisingly similar, with a much better agreement on the magnitude of aerosol impacts on cloud properties. Cloud adjustments remain a significant source of uncertainty, particularly for ice clouds. However, they are consistent with the uncertainty from observation-based methods, with the liquid water path adjustment usually enhancing the Twomey effect by less than 50%. Depending on different sets of assumptions, this work suggests that model and observation-based estimates could be more equally weighted in future synthesis studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Gryspeerdt
- Space and Atmospheric Physics Group, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | | | - Florent F. Malavelle
- College of Engineering Mathematics and Physical Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
- Met Office, Fitzroy Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Hugh Morrison
- National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, USA
| | - David Neubauer
- Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Daniel G. Partridge
- College of Engineering Mathematics and Physical Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Philip Stier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Toshihiko Takemura
- Research Institute for Applied Mathematics, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Hailong Wang
- Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, USA
| | - Minghuai Wang
- Institute for Climate and Global Change Research, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- School of Atmospheric Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Climate Change, Nanjing, China
| | - Kai Zhang
- Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, USA
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7
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Friddle RW, Thürmer K. How nanoscale surface steps promote ice growth on feldspar: microscopy observation of morphology-enhanced condensation and freezing. NANOSCALE 2019; 11:21147-21154. [PMID: 31663582 DOI: 10.1039/c9nr08729j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Ice in the atmosphere affects Earth's radiative properties and initiates most precipitation. Growing ice often requires a solid surface, either to catalyze freezing of supercooled cloud droplets or to serve as a substrate for ice deposited from water vapor. There is evidence that this surface is typically provided by airborne mineral dust; but how chemistry, structure and morphology interrelate to determine the ice-nucleating ability of mineral surfaces remains elusive. Here, we combine optical microscopy with atomic force microscopy to explore the mechanisms of initial ice growth on alkali feldspar, a mineral proposed to dominate ice nucleation in Earth's atmosphere. When cold air becomes supersaturated with respect to water, we discovered that ice rapidly spreads along steps of a feldspar surface. By measuring how ice propagation depends on surface-step height we establish a scenario where supercooled liquid water condenses at steps without having to overcome a nucleation barrier, and subsequently freezes quickly. Our results imply that steps, which are common even on macroscopically flat feldspar surfaces, can accelerate water condensation followed by freezing, thus promoting glaciation and dehydration of mixed-phase clouds.
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8
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Penner JE, Zhou C, Garnier A, Mitchell DL. Anthropogenic Aerosol Indirect Effects in Cirrus Clouds. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2018; 123:11652-11677. [PMID: 30775191 PMCID: PMC6360521 DOI: 10.1029/2018jd029204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2018] [Revised: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 09/24/2018] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
We have implemented a parameterization for forming ice in large-scale cirrus clouds that accounts for the changes in updrafts associated with a spectrum of waves acting within each time step in the model. This allows us to account for the frequency of homogeneous and heterogeneous freezing events that occur within each time step of the model and helps to determine more realistic ice number concentrations as well as changes to ice number concentrations. The model is able to fit observations of ice number at the lowest temperatures in the tropical tropopause but is still somewhat high in tropical latitudes with temperatures between 195°K and 215°K. The climate forcings associated with different representations of heterogeneous ice nuclei (IN or INPs) are primarily negative unless large additions of IN are made, such as when we assumed that all aircraft soot acts as an IN. However, they can be close to zero if it is assumed that all background dust can act as an INP irrespective of how much sulfate is deposited on these particles. Our best estimate for the forcing of anthropogenic aircraft soot in this model is -0.2 ± 0.06 W/m2, while that from anthropogenic fossil/biofuel soot is -0.093 ± 0.033 W/m2. Natural and anthropogenic open biomass burning leads to a net forcing of -0.057 ± 0.05 W/m2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joyce E. Penner
- Department of Climate and Space Sciences and EngineeringUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMIUSA
| | - Cheng Zhou
- Department of Climate and Space Sciences and EngineeringUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMIUSA
| | - Anne Garnier
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc.HamptonVAUSA
- NASA Langley Research CenterHamptonVAUSA
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9
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Petzold A, Krämer M, Neis P, Rolf C, Rohs S, Berkes F, Smit HGJ, Gallagher M, Beswick K, Lloyd G, Baumgardner D, Spichtinger P, Nédélec P, Ebert V, Buchholz B, Riese M, Wahner A. Upper tropospheric water vapour and its interaction with cirrus clouds as seen from IAGOS long-term routine in situ observations. Faraday Discuss 2017; 200:229-249. [PMID: 28574551 DOI: 10.1039/c7fd00006e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
IAGOS (In-service Aircraft for a Global Observing System) performs long-term routine in situ observations of atmospheric chemical composition (O3, CO, NOx, NOy, CO2, CH4), water vapour, aerosols, clouds, and temperature on a global scale by operating compact instruments on board of passenger aircraft. The unique characteristics of the IAGOS data set originate from the global scale sampling on air traffic routes with similar instrumentation such that the observations are truly comparable and well suited for atmospheric research on a statistical basis. Here, we present the analysis of 15 months of simultaneous observations of relative humidity with respect to ice (RHice) and ice crystal number concentration in cirrus (Nice) from July 2014 to October 2015. The joint data set of 360 hours of RHice-Nice observations in the global upper troposphere and tropopause region is analysed with respect to the in-cloud distribution of RHice and related cirrus properties. The majority of the observed cirrus is thin with Nice < 0.1 cm-3. The respective fractions of all cloud observations range from 90% over the mid-latitude North Atlantic Ocean and the Eurasian Continent to 67% over the subtropical and tropical Pacific Ocean. The in-cloud RHice distributions do not depend on the geographical region of sampling. Types of cirrus origin (in situ origin, liquid origin) are inferred for different Nice regimes and geographical regions. Most importantly, we found that in-cloud RHice shows a strong correlation to Nice with slightly supersaturated dynamic equilibrium RHice associated with higher Nice values in stronger updrafts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Petzold
- Forschungszentrum Jülich, IEK-8 Troposphere, Jülich, Germany.
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10
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Barahona D, Molod A, Kalesse H. Direct estimation of the global distribution of vertical velocity within cirrus clouds. Sci Rep 2017; 7:6840. [PMID: 28754986 PMCID: PMC5533806 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-07038-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2017] [Accepted: 06/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Cirrus clouds determine the radiative balance of the upper troposphere and the transport of water vapor across the tropopause. The representation of vertical wind velocity, W, in atmospheric models constitutes the largest source of uncertainty in the calculation of the cirrus formation rate. Using global atmospheric simulations with a spatial resolution of 7 km we obtain for the first time a direct estimate of the distribution of W at the scale relevant for cirrus formation, validated against long-term observations at two different ground sites. The standard deviation in W, σw, varies widely over the globe with the highest values resulting from orographic uplift and convection, and the lowest occurring in the Arctic. Globally about 90% of the simulated σw values are below 0.1 m s−1 and about one in 104 cloud formation events occur in environments with σw > 0.8 m s−1. Combining our estimate with reanalysis products and an advanced cloud formation scheme results in lower homogeneous ice nucleation frequency than previously reported, and a decreasing average ice crystal concentration with decreasing temperature. These features are in agreement with observations and suggest that the correct parameterization of σw is critical to simulate realistic cirrus properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donifan Barahona
- Global Modeling and Assimilation Office, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA.
| | - Andrea Molod
- Global Modeling and Assimilation Office, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - Heike Kalesse
- Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research, Leipzig, Germany
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11
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Tang M, Cziczo DJ, Grassian VH. Interactions of Water with Mineral Dust Aerosol: Water Adsorption, Hygroscopicity, Cloud Condensation, and Ice Nucleation. Chem Rev 2016; 116:4205-59. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.5b00529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 228] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mingjin Tang
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
| | - Daniel J. Cziczo
- Department
of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences and Civil and Environmental
Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Vicki H. Grassian
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Nanoengineering and Scripps Institution
of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
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12
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Cziczo DJ, Froyd KD, Hoose C, Jensen EJ, Diao M, Zondlo MA, Smith JB, Twohy CH, Murphy DM. Clarifying the Dominant Sources and Mechanisms of Cirrus Cloud Formation. Science 2013; 340:1320-4. [DOI: 10.1126/science.1234145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 371] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
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