Articles | Volume 18, issue 23
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 17601–17614, 2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17601-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 17601–17614, 2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17601-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article 12 Dec 2018
Research article | 12 Dec 2018
Comparing ERA-Interim clouds with satellite observations using a simplified satellite simulator
Martin Stengel et al.
Related authors
Caroline A. Poulsen, Gregory R. McGarragh, Gareth E. Thomas, Martin Stengel, Matthew W. Christensen, Adam C. Povey, Simon R. Proud, Elisa Carboni, Rainer Hollmann, and Roy G. Grainger
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 2121–2135, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2121-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2121-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We have created a satellite cloud and radiation climatology from the ATSR-2 and AATSR on board ERS-2 and Envisat, respectively, which spans the period 1995–2012. The data set was created using a combination of optimal estimation and neural net techniques. The data set was created as part of the ESA Climate Change Initiative program. The data set has been compared with active CALIOP lidar measurements and compared with MAC-LWP AND CERES-EBAF measurements and is shown to have good performance.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 457–474, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-457-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-457-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we analyse aerosol and cloud changes over southern China from 2006 to 2015 and investigate their possible interaction mechanisms. Results show decreasing aerosol loads and increasing liquid cloud cover in late autumn. Further analysis based on various satellite data sets shows consistency with the aerosol semi-direct effect, whereby less absorbing aerosols in the cloud layer would lead to an overall decrease in the evaporation of cloud droplets, thus increasing cloud amount.
Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Oliver Sus, Stephan Finkensieper, Benjamin Würzler, Daniel Philipp, Rainer Hollmann, Caroline Poulsen, Matthew Christensen, and Gregory McGarragh
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 41–60, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-41-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-41-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The Cloud_cci AVHRR-PMv3 dataset contains global, cloud and radiative flux properties covering the period of 1982 to 2016. The properties were retrieved from AVHRR measurements recorded by afternoon satellites of the NOAA POES missions. Validation against CALIOP, BSRN and CERES demonstrates the high quality of the data. The Cloud_cci AVHRR-PMv3 dataset allows for a large variety of climate applications that build on cloud properties, radiative flux properties and/or the link between them.
Vladimir S. Kostsov, Anke Kniffka, Martin Stengel, and Dmitry V. Ionov
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 5927–5946, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5927-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5927-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Cloud liquid water path (LWP) is one of the target atmospheric parameters retrieved remotely from ground-based and space-borne platforms. The LWP data delivered by the satellite instruments SEVIRI and AVHRR together with the data provided by the ground-based radiometer RPG-HATPRO near St. Petersburg, Russia, have been compared. Our study revealed considerable differences between LWP data from SEVIRI and AVHRR in winter over ice-covered relatively small water bodies in this region.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 2863–2879, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2863-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2863-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Cloud glory and bow phenomena cause irregularities in satellite-based retrievals of cloud optical and microphysical properties. Here we combine two geostationary satellites over the same areas to analyze retrievals under those conditions. Results show a high sensitivity of retrievals to the assumed width of the cloud droplet size distribution and provide insights into possible improvements in satellite retrievals by appropriately adjusting this assumed parameter.
Marc Mallet, Pierre Nabat, Paquita Zuidema, Jens Redemann, Andrew Mark Sayer, Martin Stengel, Sebastian Schmidt, Sabrina Cochrane, Sharon Burton, Richard Ferrare, Kerry Meyer, Pablo Saide, Hiren Jethva, Omar Torres, Robert Wood, David Saint Martin, Romain Roehrig, Christina Hsu, and Paola Formenti
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 4963–4990, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-4963-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-4963-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
The model is able to represent LWP but not the LCF. AOD is consistent over the continent but also over ocean (ACAOD). Differences are observed in SSA due to the absence of internal mixing in ALADIN-Climate. A significant regional gradient of the forcing at TOA is observed. An intense positive forcing is simulated over Gabon. Results highlight the significant effect of enhanced moisture on BBA extinction. The surface dimming modifies the energy budget.
Salomon Eliasson, Karl Göran Karlsson, Erik van Meijgaard, Jan Fokke Meirink, Martin Stengel, and Ulrika Willén
Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 829–847, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-829-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-829-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
To enable fair comparisons of clouds between climate models and the
ESA Cloud_cci climate data record (CDR), we present a tool called the
Cloud_cci simulator. The tool takes into account the geometry and
cloud detection capabilities of the Cloud_cci CDR to allow fair
comparisons. We demonstrate the simulator on two climate models. We
find the impact of time sampling has a large effect on simulated cloud
water amount and that the simulator reduces the cloud cover by about
10 % globally.
Rocío Baró, Pedro Jiménez-Guerrero, Martin Stengel, Dominik Brunner, Gabriele Curci, Renate Forkel, Lucy Neal, Laura Palacios-Peña, Nicholas Savage, Martijn Schaap, Paolo Tuccella, Hugo Denier van der Gon, and Stefano Galmarini
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 15183–15199, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15183-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15183-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Particles in the atmosphere, such as pollution, desert dust, and volcanic ash, have an impact on meteorology. They interact with incoming radiation resulting in a cooling effect of the atmosphere. Today, the use of meteorology and chemistry models help us to understand these processes, but there are a lot of uncertainties. The goal of this work is to evaluate how these interactions are represented in the models by comparing them to satellite data to see how close they are to reality.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2018-554, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2018-554, 2018
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we analyse aerosol and cloud changes over South China and investigate their possible interactions. The results show decreasing aerosol loads and increasing liquid clouds. Further analysis of these changes based on various satellite data sets show consistency with the aerosol semi-direct effect, whereby less absorbing aerosols in the cloud layer would lead to an overall decrease in evaporation of cloud droplets, thus increasing cloud amount and cover.
Oliver Sus, Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Gregory McGarragh, Caroline Poulsen, Adam C. Povey, Cornelia Schlundt, Gareth Thomas, Matthew Christensen, Simon Proud, Matthias Jerg, Roy Grainger, and Rainer Hollmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 3373–3396, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3373-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3373-2018, 2018
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This paper presents a new cloud detection and classification framework, CC4CL. It applies a sophisticated optimal estimation method to derive cloud variables from satellite data of various polar-orbiting platforms and sensors (AVHRR, MODIS, AATSR). CC4CL provides explicit uncertainty quantification and long-term consistency for decadal timeseries at various spatial resolutions. We analysed 5 case studies to show that cloud height estimates are very realistic unless optically thin clouds overlap.
Gregory R. McGarragh, Caroline A. Poulsen, Gareth E. Thomas, Adam C. Povey, Oliver Sus, Stefan Stapelberg, Cornelia Schlundt, Simon Proud, Matthew W. Christensen, Martin Stengel, Rainer Hollmann, and Roy G. Grainger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 3397–3431, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3397-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3397-2018, 2018
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Satellites are vital for measuring cloud properties necessary for climate prediction studies. We present a method to retrieve cloud properties from satellite based radiometric measurements. The methodology employed is known as optimal estimation and belongs in the class of statistical inversion methods based on Bayes' theorem. We show, through theoretical retrieval simulations, that the solution is stable and accurate to within 10–20% depending on cloud thickness.
Michael Keller, Nico Kröner, Oliver Fuhrer, Daniel Lüthi, Juerg Schmidli, Martin Stengel, Reto Stöckli, and Christoph Schär
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 5253–5264, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5253-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5253-2018, 2018
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Deep convection is often associated with thunderstorms and heavy rain events. In this study, the sensitivity of Alpine deep convective events to environmental parameters and climate warming is investigated. To this end, simulations are conducted at resolutions of 12 and 2 km. The results show that the climate change signal strongly depends upon the horizontal resolution. In particular, significant differences are found in terms of the radiative feedbacks.
Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Oliver Sus, Cornelia Schlundt, Caroline Poulsen, Gareth Thomas, Matthew Christensen, Cintia Carbajal Henken, Rene Preusker, Jürgen Fischer, Abhay Devasthale, Ulrika Willén, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Gregory R. McGarragh, Simon Proud, Adam C. Povey, Roy G. Grainger, Jan Fokke Meirink, Artem Feofilov, Ralf Bennartz, Jedrzej S. Bojanowski, and Rainer Hollmann
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 881–904, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-881-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-881-2017, 2017
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We present new cloud property datasets based on measurements from the passive imaging satellite sensors AVHRR, MODIS, ATSR2, AATSR and MERIS. Retrieval systems were developed that include cloud detection and cloud typing followed by optimal estimation retrievals of cloud properties (e.g. cloud-top pressure, effective radius, optical thickness, water path). Special features of all datasets are spectral consistency and rigorous uncertainty propagation from pixel-level data to monthly properties.
Nikos Benas, Stephan Finkensieper, Martin Stengel, Gerd-Jan van Zadelhoff, Timo Hanschmann, Rainer Hollmann, and Jan Fokke Meirink
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 415–434, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-415-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-415-2017, 2017
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This study focuses on an evaluation of CLAAS-2 (Cloud property dAtAset using SEVIRI, Edition 2), which was created based on observations from geostationary Meteosat satellites. Using a variety of reference datasets, very good overall agreement is found. This suggests the usefulness of CLAAS-2 in applications ranging from high spatial and temporal resolution cloud process studies to the evaluation of regional climate models.
Sarah Taylor, Philip Stier, Bethan White, Stephan Finkensieper, and Martin Stengel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 7035–7053, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-7035-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-7035-2017, 2017
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Variability of convective cloud spans a wide range of temporal and spatial scales and is important for global weather and climate. This study uses satellite data from SEVIRI to quantify the diurnal cycle of cloud top temperatures over a large area. Results indicate that in some regions the diurnal cycle apparent in the observations may be significantly impacted by diurnal variability in the accuracy of the retrieval. These results may interest both the observation and modelling communities.
Karl-Göran Karlsson, Kati Anttila, Jörg Trentmann, Martin Stengel, Jan Fokke Meirink, Abhay Devasthale, Timo Hanschmann, Steffen Kothe, Emmihenna Jääskeläinen, Joseph Sedlar, Nikos Benas, Gerd-Jan van Zadelhoff, Cornelia Schlundt, Diana Stein, Stefan Finkensieper, Nina Håkansson, and Rainer Hollmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 5809–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5809-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5809-2017, 2017
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The paper presents the second version of a global climate data record based on satellite measurements from polar orbiting weather satellites. It describes the global evolution of cloudiness, surface albedo and surface radiation during the time period 1982–2015. The main improvements of algorithms are described together with some validation results. In addition, some early analysis is presented of some particularly interesting climate features (Arctic albedo and cloudiness + global cloudiness).
Ralf Bennartz, Heidrun Höschen, Bruno Picard, Marc Schröder, Martin Stengel, Oliver Sus, Bojan Bojkov, Stefano Casadio, Hannes Diedrich, Salomon Eliasson, Frank Fell, Jürgen Fischer, Rainer Hollmann, Rene Preusker, and Ulrika Willén
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1387–1402, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1387-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1387-2017, 2017
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The microwave radiometers (MWR) on board ERS-1, ERS-2, and Envisat provide a continuous time series of brightness temperature observations between 1991 and 2012. Here we report on a new total column water vapour (TCWV) and wet tropospheric correction (WTC) dataset that builds on this time series. The dataset is publicly available under doi:10.5676/DWD_EMIR/V001.
M. Hummel, C. Hoose, M. Gallagher, D. A. Healy, J. A. Huffman, D. O'Connor, U. Pöschl, C. Pöhlker, N. H. Robinson, M. Schnaiter, J. R. Sodeau, M. Stengel, E. Toprak, and H. Vogel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 6127–6146, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-6127-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-6127-2015, 2015
R. Lindstrot, M. Stengel, M. Schröder, J. Fischer, R. Preusker, N. Schneider, T. Steenbergen, and B. R. Bojkov
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 6, 221–233, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-6-221-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-6-221-2014, 2014
M. Stengel, A. Kniffka, J. F. Meirink, M. Lockhoff, J. Tan, and R. Hollmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 4297–4311, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-4297-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-4297-2014, 2014
A. Kniffka, M. Stengel, M. Lockhoff, R. Bennartz, and R. Hollmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 887–905, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-887-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-887-2014, 2014
K.-G. Karlsson, A. Riihelä, R. Müller, J. F. Meirink, J. Sedlar, M. Stengel, M. Lockhoff, J. Trentmann, F. Kaspar, R. Hollmann, and E. Wolters
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 5351–5367, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-5351-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-5351-2013, 2013
Wim C. de Rooy, Pier Siebesma, Peter Baas, Geert Lenderink, Stephan de Roode, Hylke de Vries, Erik van Meijgaard, Jan Fokke Meirink, Sander Tijm, and Bram van 't Veen
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2021-184, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2021-184, 2021
Preprint under review for GMD
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This paper describes a comprehensive model update to the boundary-layer schemes. Because the involved parameterisations are all built on widely applied frameworks, the here described modifications are applicable to many NWP and climate models. The model update contains substantial modifications to the cloud, turbulence and convection schemes and leads to a substantial improvement on several aspects of the model, especially low cloud forecasts.
Hartwig Deneke, Carola Barrientos-Velasco, Sebastian Bley, Anja Hünerbein, Stephan Lenk, Andreas Macke, Jan Fokke Meirink, Marion Schroedter-Homscheidt, Fabian Senf, Ping Wang, Frank Werner, and Jonas Witthuhn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 5107–5126, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5107-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5107-2021, 2021
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The SEVIRI instrument flown on the European geostationary Meteosat satellites acquires multi-spectral images at a relatively coarse pixel resolution of 3 × 3 km2, but it also has a broadband high-resolution visible channel with 1 × 1 km2 spatial resolution. In this study, the modification of an existing cloud property and solar irradiance retrieval to use this channel to improve the spatial resolution of its output products as well as the resulting benefits for applications are described.
Sandra Vázquez-Martín, Thomas Kuhn, and Salomon Eliasson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 7545–7565, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7545-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7545-2021, 2021
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In this work, we present new fall speed measurements of natural snow particles and ice crystals. We study the particle fall speed relationships and how they depend on particle shape. We analyze these relationships as a function of particle size, cross-sectional area, and area ratio for different particle shape groups. We also investigate the dependence of the particle fall speed on the orientation, as it has a large impact on the cross-sectional area.
Sandra Vázquez-Martín, Thomas Kuhn, and Salomon Eliasson
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-203, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-203, 2021
Preprint under review for ACP
Ralf Döscher, Mario Acosta, Andrea Alessandri, Peter Anthoni, Almut Arneth, Thomas Arsouze, Tommi Bergmann, Raffaele Bernadello, Souhail Bousetta, Louis-Philippe Caron, Glenn Carver, Miguel Castrillo, Franco Catalano, Ivana Cvijanovic, Paolo Davini, Evelien Dekker, Francisco J. Doblas-Reyes, David Docquier, Pablo Echevarria, Uwe Fladrich, Ramon Fuentes-Franco, Matthias Gröger, Jost v. Hardenberg, Jenny Hieronymus, M. Pasha Karami, Jukka-Pekka Keskinen, Torben Koenigk, Risto Makkonen, Francois Massonnet, Martin Ménégoz, Paul A. Miller, Eduardo Moreno-Chamarro, Lars Nieradzik, Twan van Noije, Paul Nolan, Declan O’Donnell, Pirkka Ollinaho, Gijs van den Oord, Pablo Ortega, Oriol Tintó Prims, Arthur Ramos, Thomas Reerink, Clement Rousset, Yohan Ruprich-Robert, Philippe Le Sager, Torben Schmith, Roland Schrödner, Federico Serva, Valentina Sicardi, Marianne Sloth Madsen, Benjamin Smith, Tian Tian, Etienne Tourigny, Petteri Uotila, Martin Vancoppenolle, Shiyu Wang, David Wårlind, Ulrika Willén, Klaus Wyser, Shuting Yang, Xavier Yepes-Arbós, and Qiong Zhang
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2020-446, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2020-446, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for GMD
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The Earth System Model EC-Earth3 is documented here. Key performance metrics show physical behaviour and biases well within the frame known from recent models. With improved physical and dynamic features, new ESM components, community tools, and largely improved physical performance compared to the CMIP5 version, EC-Earth3 represents a clear step forward for the only European community ESM. We demonstrate here that EC-Earth3 is suited for a range of tasks in CMIP6 and beyond.
Caroline A. Poulsen, Gregory R. McGarragh, Gareth E. Thomas, Martin Stengel, Matthew W. Christensen, Adam C. Povey, Simon R. Proud, Elisa Carboni, Rainer Hollmann, and Roy G. Grainger
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 2121–2135, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2121-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2121-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We have created a satellite cloud and radiation climatology from the ATSR-2 and AATSR on board ERS-2 and Envisat, respectively, which spans the period 1995–2012. The data set was created using a combination of optimal estimation and neural net techniques. The data set was created as part of the ESA Climate Change Initiative program. The data set has been compared with active CALIOP lidar measurements and compared with MAC-LWP AND CERES-EBAF measurements and is shown to have good performance.
Salomon Eliasson, Karl-Göran Karlsson, and Ulrika Willén
Geosci. Model Dev., 13, 297–314, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-13-297-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-13-297-2020, 2020
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This paper describes a new satellite simulator. Its purpose is to simulate the CLARA-A2 climate data record from a climate model atmosphere. We explain how the simulator takes into account the regionally variable cloud detection skill of the observations. The simulator makes use of the long/lat-gridded validation between CLARA-A2 and the CALIOP satellite-borne lidar dataset. Using the EC-Earth climate model, we show a sizable impact on climate model validation, especially at high latitudes.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 457–474, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-457-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-457-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we analyse aerosol and cloud changes over southern China from 2006 to 2015 and investigate their possible interaction mechanisms. Results show decreasing aerosol loads and increasing liquid cloud cover in late autumn. Further analysis based on various satellite data sets shows consistency with the aerosol semi-direct effect, whereby less absorbing aerosols in the cloud layer would lead to an overall decrease in the evaporation of cloud droplets, thus increasing cloud amount.
Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Oliver Sus, Stephan Finkensieper, Benjamin Würzler, Daniel Philipp, Rainer Hollmann, Caroline Poulsen, Matthew Christensen, and Gregory McGarragh
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 41–60, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-41-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-41-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The Cloud_cci AVHRR-PMv3 dataset contains global, cloud and radiative flux properties covering the period of 1982 to 2016. The properties were retrieved from AVHRR measurements recorded by afternoon satellites of the NOAA POES missions. Validation against CALIOP, BSRN and CERES demonstrates the high quality of the data. The Cloud_cci AVHRR-PMv3 dataset allows for a large variety of climate applications that build on cloud properties, radiative flux properties and/or the link between them.
Vladimir S. Kostsov, Anke Kniffka, Martin Stengel, and Dmitry V. Ionov
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 5927–5946, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5927-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5927-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Cloud liquid water path (LWP) is one of the target atmospheric parameters retrieved remotely from ground-based and space-borne platforms. The LWP data delivered by the satellite instruments SEVIRI and AVHRR together with the data provided by the ground-based radiometer RPG-HATPRO near St. Petersburg, Russia, have been compared. Our study revealed considerable differences between LWP data from SEVIRI and AVHRR in winter over ice-covered relatively small water bodies in this region.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 2863–2879, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2863-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2863-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Cloud glory and bow phenomena cause irregularities in satellite-based retrievals of cloud optical and microphysical properties. Here we combine two geostationary satellites over the same areas to analyze retrievals under those conditions. Results show a high sensitivity of retrievals to the assumed width of the cloud droplet size distribution and provide insights into possible improvements in satellite retrievals by appropriately adjusting this assumed parameter.
Marc Mallet, Pierre Nabat, Paquita Zuidema, Jens Redemann, Andrew Mark Sayer, Martin Stengel, Sebastian Schmidt, Sabrina Cochrane, Sharon Burton, Richard Ferrare, Kerry Meyer, Pablo Saide, Hiren Jethva, Omar Torres, Robert Wood, David Saint Martin, Romain Roehrig, Christina Hsu, and Paola Formenti
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 4963–4990, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-4963-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-4963-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
The model is able to represent LWP but not the LCF. AOD is consistent over the continent but also over ocean (ACAOD). Differences are observed in SSA due to the absence of internal mixing in ALADIN-Climate. A significant regional gradient of the forcing at TOA is observed. An intense positive forcing is simulated over Gabon. Results highlight the significant effect of enhanced moisture on BBA extinction. The surface dimming modifies the energy budget.
Salomon Eliasson, Karl Göran Karlsson, Erik van Meijgaard, Jan Fokke Meirink, Martin Stengel, and Ulrika Willén
Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 829–847, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-829-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-829-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
To enable fair comparisons of clouds between climate models and the
ESA Cloud_cci climate data record (CDR), we present a tool called the
Cloud_cci simulator. The tool takes into account the geometry and
cloud detection capabilities of the Cloud_cci CDR to allow fair
comparisons. We demonstrate the simulator on two climate models. We
find the impact of time sampling has a large effect on simulated cloud
water amount and that the simulator reduces the cloud cover by about
10 % globally.
Rocío Baró, Pedro Jiménez-Guerrero, Martin Stengel, Dominik Brunner, Gabriele Curci, Renate Forkel, Lucy Neal, Laura Palacios-Peña, Nicholas Savage, Martijn Schaap, Paolo Tuccella, Hugo Denier van der Gon, and Stefano Galmarini
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 15183–15199, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15183-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15183-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Particles in the atmosphere, such as pollution, desert dust, and volcanic ash, have an impact on meteorology. They interact with incoming radiation resulting in a cooling effect of the atmosphere. Today, the use of meteorology and chemistry models help us to understand these processes, but there are a lot of uncertainties. The goal of this work is to evaluate how these interactions are represented in the models by comparing them to satellite data to see how close they are to reality.
Chellappan Seethala, Jan Fokke Meirink, Ákos Horváth, Ralf Bennartz, and Rob Roebeling
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 13283–13304, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13283-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-13283-2018, 2018
Short summary
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We compared the microphysical properties of South Atlantic stratocumulus (Sc) from three different satellite instruments (SEVIRI, TMI, MODIS). The liquid water path (LWP) and its diurnal cycle from the three datasets agreed very well in overcast, smoke-free scenes. LWP showed a decrease from an early morning peak to a late afternoon minimum, after which it increased until morning. The presence of smoke aloft Sc, however, negatively biased the LWP retrieved by the visible/near-infrared technique.
Nikos Benas, Jan Fokke Meirink, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Martin Stengel, and Piet Stammes
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2018-554, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2018-554, 2018
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we analyse aerosol and cloud changes over South China and investigate their possible interactions. The results show decreasing aerosol loads and increasing liquid clouds. Further analysis of these changes based on various satellite data sets show consistency with the aerosol semi-direct effect, whereby less absorbing aerosols in the cloud layer would lead to an overall decrease in evaporation of cloud droplets, thus increasing cloud amount and cover.
Oliver Sus, Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Gregory McGarragh, Caroline Poulsen, Adam C. Povey, Cornelia Schlundt, Gareth Thomas, Matthew Christensen, Simon Proud, Matthias Jerg, Roy Grainger, and Rainer Hollmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 3373–3396, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3373-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3373-2018, 2018
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This paper presents a new cloud detection and classification framework, CC4CL. It applies a sophisticated optimal estimation method to derive cloud variables from satellite data of various polar-orbiting platforms and sensors (AVHRR, MODIS, AATSR). CC4CL provides explicit uncertainty quantification and long-term consistency for decadal timeseries at various spatial resolutions. We analysed 5 case studies to show that cloud height estimates are very realistic unless optically thin clouds overlap.
Gregory R. McGarragh, Caroline A. Poulsen, Gareth E. Thomas, Adam C. Povey, Oliver Sus, Stefan Stapelberg, Cornelia Schlundt, Simon Proud, Matthew W. Christensen, Martin Stengel, Rainer Hollmann, and Roy G. Grainger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 3397–3431, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3397-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-3397-2018, 2018
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Satellites are vital for measuring cloud properties necessary for climate prediction studies. We present a method to retrieve cloud properties from satellite based radiometric measurements. The methodology employed is known as optimal estimation and belongs in the class of statistical inversion methods based on Bayes' theorem. We show, through theoretical retrieval simulations, that the solution is stable and accurate to within 10–20% depending on cloud thickness.
Rafael Poyatos, Oliver Sus, Llorenç Badiella, Maurizio Mencuccini, and Jordi Martínez-Vilalta
Biogeosciences, 15, 2601–2617, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-2601-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-2601-2018, 2018
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Plant traits are characteristics of plants that are easy to measure and that show how plants function. Values of these traits for many species and locations worldwide are available in trait databases, but these are often incomplete. Here we use different statistical methods to fill the gaps in a trait database of Mediterranean and temperate tree species. Combining traits and environmental information provides more plausible gap-filled databases and preserves the observed trait variability.
Michael Keller, Nico Kröner, Oliver Fuhrer, Daniel Lüthi, Juerg Schmidli, Martin Stengel, Reto Stöckli, and Christoph Schär
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 5253–5264, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5253-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-5253-2018, 2018
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Deep convection is often associated with thunderstorms and heavy rain events. In this study, the sensitivity of Alpine deep convective events to environmental parameters and climate warming is investigated. To this end, simulations are conducted at resolutions of 12 and 2 km. The results show that the climate change signal strongly depends upon the horizontal resolution. In particular, significant differences are found in terms of the radiative feedbacks.
Martin Stengel, Stefan Stapelberg, Oliver Sus, Cornelia Schlundt, Caroline Poulsen, Gareth Thomas, Matthew Christensen, Cintia Carbajal Henken, Rene Preusker, Jürgen Fischer, Abhay Devasthale, Ulrika Willén, Karl-Göran Karlsson, Gregory R. McGarragh, Simon Proud, Adam C. Povey, Roy G. Grainger, Jan Fokke Meirink, Artem Feofilov, Ralf Bennartz, Jedrzej S. Bojanowski, and Rainer Hollmann
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 881–904, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-881-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-881-2017, 2017
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We present new cloud property datasets based on measurements from the passive imaging satellite sensors AVHRR, MODIS, ATSR2, AATSR and MERIS. Retrieval systems were developed that include cloud detection and cloud typing followed by optimal estimation retrievals of cloud properties (e.g. cloud-top pressure, effective radius, optical thickness, water path). Special features of all datasets are spectral consistency and rigorous uncertainty propagation from pixel-level data to monthly properties.
Nikos Benas, Stephan Finkensieper, Martin Stengel, Gerd-Jan van Zadelhoff, Timo Hanschmann, Rainer Hollmann, and Jan Fokke Meirink
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 415–434, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-415-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-415-2017, 2017
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This study focuses on an evaluation of CLAAS-2 (Cloud property dAtAset using SEVIRI, Edition 2), which was created based on observations from geostationary Meteosat satellites. Using a variety of reference datasets, very good overall agreement is found. This suggests the usefulness of CLAAS-2 in applications ranging from high spatial and temporal resolution cloud process studies to the evaluation of regional climate models.
Stefano Federico, Rosa Claudia Torcasio, Paolo Sanò, Daniele Casella, Monica Campanelli, Jan Fokke Meirink, Ping Wang, Stefania Vergari, Henri Diémoz, and Stefano Dietrich
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 2337–2352, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-2337-2017, 2017
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In this paper we evaluate the performance of two estimates of the global horizontal irradiance (GHI), one derived from the Meteosat Second Generation and one from a meteorological model (Regional Atmospheric Modeling System) forecast. The focus area is Italy, and the performance is evaluated for 12 pyranometers spanning a range of climate conditions, from Mediterranean maritime to Alpine.
Sarah Taylor, Philip Stier, Bethan White, Stephan Finkensieper, and Martin Stengel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 7035–7053, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-7035-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-7035-2017, 2017
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Variability of convective cloud spans a wide range of temporal and spatial scales and is important for global weather and climate. This study uses satellite data from SEVIRI to quantify the diurnal cycle of cloud top temperatures over a large area. Results indicate that in some regions the diurnal cycle apparent in the observations may be significantly impacted by diurnal variability in the accuracy of the retrieval. These results may interest both the observation and modelling communities.
Karl-Göran Karlsson, Kati Anttila, Jörg Trentmann, Martin Stengel, Jan Fokke Meirink, Abhay Devasthale, Timo Hanschmann, Steffen Kothe, Emmihenna Jääskeläinen, Joseph Sedlar, Nikos Benas, Gerd-Jan van Zadelhoff, Cornelia Schlundt, Diana Stein, Stefan Finkensieper, Nina Håkansson, and Rainer Hollmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 5809–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5809-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-5809-2017, 2017
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The paper presents the second version of a global climate data record based on satellite measurements from polar orbiting weather satellites. It describes the global evolution of cloudiness, surface albedo and surface radiation during the time period 1982–2015. The main improvements of algorithms are described together with some validation results. In addition, some early analysis is presented of some particularly interesting climate features (Arctic albedo and cloudiness + global cloudiness).
Ralf Bennartz, Heidrun Höschen, Bruno Picard, Marc Schröder, Martin Stengel, Oliver Sus, Bojan Bojkov, Stefano Casadio, Hannes Diedrich, Salomon Eliasson, Frank Fell, Jürgen Fischer, Rainer Hollmann, Rene Preusker, and Ulrika Willén
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1387–1402, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1387-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1387-2017, 2017
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The microwave radiometers (MWR) on board ERS-1, ERS-2, and Envisat provide a continuous time series of brightness temperature observations between 1991 and 2012. Here we report on a new total column water vapour (TCWV) and wet tropospheric correction (WTC) dataset that builds on this time series. The dataset is publicly available under doi:10.5676/DWD_EMIR/V001.
Adrianus de Laat, Eric Defer, Julien Delanoë, Fabien Dezitter, Amanda Gounou, Alice Grandin, Anthony Guignard, Jan Fokke Meirink, Jean-Marc Moisselin, and Frédéric Parol
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 1359–1371, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1359-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-1359-2017, 2017
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In-flight icing is an important aviation hazard which is still poorly understood, but consensus is that the presence of high ice water content is a necessary condition. For the European High Altitude Ice Crystals project a geostationary satellite remote-sensing mask has been developed for detection of atmospheric cloud environments where high ice water content is likely to occur. The mask performs satisfactory when compared against independent satellite ice water content measurements.
M. Hummel, C. Hoose, M. Gallagher, D. A. Healy, J. A. Huffman, D. O'Connor, U. Pöschl, C. Pöhlker, N. H. Robinson, M. Schnaiter, J. R. Sodeau, M. Stengel, E. Toprak, and H. Vogel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 6127–6146, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-6127-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-6127-2015, 2015
R. Lindstrot, M. Stengel, M. Schröder, J. Fischer, R. Preusker, N. Schneider, T. Steenbergen, and B. R. Bojkov
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 6, 221–233, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-6-221-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-6-221-2014, 2014
M. Stengel, A. Kniffka, J. F. Meirink, M. Lockhoff, J. Tan, and R. Hollmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 4297–4311, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-4297-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-4297-2014, 2014
A. Kniffka, M. Stengel, M. Lockhoff, R. Bennartz, and R. Hollmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 887–905, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-887-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-887-2014, 2014
J. F. Meirink, R. A. Roebeling, and P. Stammes
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 2495–2508, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-2495-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-2495-2013, 2013
K.-G. Karlsson, A. Riihelä, R. Müller, J. F. Meirink, J. Sedlar, M. Stengel, M. Lockhoff, J. Trentmann, F. Kaspar, R. Hollmann, and E. Wolters
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 5351–5367, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-5351-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-5351-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Clouds and Precipitation | Research Activity: Remote Sensing | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Physics (physical properties and processes)
A new conceptual model for adiabatic fog
Deciphering organization of GOES-16 green cumulus through the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) lens
Satellite retrieval of cloud base height and geometric thickness of low-level cloud based on CALIPSO
Lightning occurrences and intensity over the Indian region: long-term trends and future projections
Contrasting ice formation in Arctic clouds: surface-coupled vs. surface-decoupled clouds
Evaluation of the CMIP6 marine subtropical stratocumulus cloud albedo and its controlling factors
Identifying meteorological influences on marine low-cloud mesoscale morphology using satellite classifications
Global Evidence of Aerosol-induced Invigoration in Marine Cumulus Cloud
Lidar observations of cirrus clouds in Palau (7°33′ N, 134°48′ E)
Multiyear statistics of columnar ice production in stratiform clouds over Hyytiälä, Finland
Observing the timescales of aerosol–cloud interactions in snapshot satellite images
Potential impact of aerosols on convective clouds revealed by Himawari-8 observations over different terrain types in eastern China
How frequent is natural cloud seeding from ice cloud layers ( < −35 °C) over Switzerland?
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska
Characterisation and surface radiative impact of Arctic low clouds from the IAOOS field experiment
Changes of cirrus cloud properties and occurrence over Europe during the COVID-19 caused air traffic reduction
A-Train estimates of the sensitivity of the cloud-to-rainwater ratio to cloud size, relative humidity, and aerosols
Ice injected into the tropopause by deep convection – Part 2: Over the Maritime Continent
3D radiative heating of tropical upper tropospheric cloud systems derived from synergistic A-Train observations and machine learning
The potential of increasing man-made air pollution to reduce rainfall over southern West Africa
The dual-field-of-view polarization lidar technique: a new concept in monitoring aerosol effects in liquid-water clouds – theoretical framework
The dual-field-of-view polarization lidar technique: a new concept in monitoring aerosol effects in liquid-water clouds – case studies
Constraining the Twomey effect from satellite observations: issues and perspectives
Microphysical properties of three types of snow clouds: implication for satellite snowfall retrievals
Properties of ice cloud over Beijing from surface Ka-band radar observations during 2014–2017
Linkage among ice crystal microphysics, mesoscale dynamics, and cloud and precipitation structures revealed by collocated microwave radiometer and multifrequency radar observations
Possible mechanisms of summer cirrus clouds over the Tibetan Plateau
Mid-level clouds are frequent above the southeast Atlantic stratocumulus clouds
Towards the connection between snow microphysics and melting layer: insights from multifrequency and dual-polarization radar observations during BAECC
Cloud phase characteristics over Southeast Asia from A-Train satellite observations
Cloud regimes over the Amazon Basin: perspectives from the GoAmazon2014/5 campaign
Microphysics and dynamics of snowfall associated with a warm conveyor belt over Korea
Linking large-scale circulation patterns to low-cloud properties
Quantifying cloud adjustments and the radiative forcing due to aerosol–cloud interactions in satellite observations of warm marine clouds
Small-scale structure of thermodynamic phase in Arctic mixed-phase clouds observed by airborne remote sensing during a cold air outbreak and a warm air advection event
The influence of water vapor anomalies on clouds and their radiative effect at Ny-Ålesund
Variability in cirrus cloud properties using a PollyXT Raman lidar over high and tropical latitudes
Deconvolution of boundary layer depth and aerosol constraints on cloud water path in subtropical stratocumulus decks
Investigation of aerosol–cloud interactions under different absorptive aerosol regimes using Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) southern Great Plains (SGP) ground-based measurements
Low-level mixed-phase clouds in a complex Arctic environment
Synoptic-scale controls of fog and low-cloud variability in the Namib Desert
A new classification of satellite-derived liquid water cloud regimes at cloud scale
The day-to-day co-variability between mineral dust and cloud glaciation: a proxy for heterogeneous freezing
Retrieval of the vertical evolution of the cloud effective radius from the Chinese FY-4 (Feng Yun 4) next-generation geostationary satellites
The role of spring dry zonal advection in summer drought onset over the US Great Plains
Diurnal variation of high-level clouds from the synergy of AIRS and IASI space-borne infrared sounders
Analysis and quantification of ENSO-linked changes in the tropical Atlantic cloud vertical distribution using 14 years of MODIS observations
Variability in vertical structure of precipitation with sea surface temperature over the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal as inferred by Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission precipitation radar measurements
Spatial and temporal variability of snowfall over Greenland from CloudSat observations
Cloud responses to climate variability over the extratropical oceans as observed by MISR and MODIS
Felipe Toledo, Martial Haeffelin, Eivind Wærsted, and Jean-Charles Dupont
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13099–13117, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13099-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13099-2021, 2021
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The article presents a new conceptual model to describe the temporal evolution of continental fog layers, developed based on 7 years of fog measurements performed at the SIRTA observatory, France. This new paradigm relates the visibility reduction caused by fog to its vertical thickness and liquid water path and provides diagnostic variables that could substantially improve the reliability of fog dissipation nowcasting at a local scale, based on real-time profiling observation.
Tom Dror, Mickaël D. Chekroun, Orit Altaratz, and Ilan Koren
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 12261–12272, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-12261-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-12261-2021, 2021
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A part of continental shallow convective cumulus (Cu) was shown to share properties such as organization and formation over vegetated areas, thus named green Cu. Mechanisms behind the formed patterns are not understood. We use different metrics and an empirical orthogonal function (EOF) to decompose the dataset and quantify organization factors (cloud streets and gravity waves). We show that clouds form a highly organized grid structure over hundreds of kilometers at the field lifetime.
Xin Lu, Feiyue Mao, Daniel Rosenfeld, Yannian Zhu, Zengxin Pan, and Wei Gong
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 11979–12003, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11979-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11979-2021, 2021
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In this paper, a novel method for retrieving cloud base height and geometric thickness is developed and applied to produce a global climatology of boundary layer clouds with a high accuracy. The retrieval is based on the 333 m resolution low-level cloud distribution as obtained from the CALIPSO lidar data. The main part of the study describes the variability of cloud vertical geometrical properties in space, season, and time of the day. Resultant new insights are presented.
Rohit Chakraborty, Arindam Chakraborty, Ghouse Basha, and Madineni Venkat Ratnam
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 11161–11177, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11161-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11161-2021, 2021
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In this study, urbanization-induced surface warming has been found to trigger prominent changes in upper-troposphere–lower-stratosphere regions leading to stronger and more frequent lightning extremes over India. Consequently, the implementation of this hypothesis in global climate models reveals that lightning frequency and intensity values across India will rise by ~10–25 % and 15–50 %, respectively, by 2100 at the current urbanization rate, which should be alarming for present policymakers.
Hannes J. Griesche, Kevin Ohneiser, Patric Seifert, Martin Radenz, Ronny Engelmann, and Albert Ansmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10357–10374, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10357-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10357-2021, 2021
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Heterogeneous ice formation in Arctic mixed-phase clouds under consideration of their surface-coupling state is investigated. Cloud phase and macrophysical properties were determined by means of lidar and cloud radar measurements, the coupling state, and cloud minimum temperature by radiosonde profiles. Above −15 °C cloud minimum temperature, surface-coupled clouds are more likely to contain ice by a factor of 2–6. By means of a literature survey, causes of the observed effects are discussed.
Bida Jian, Jiming Li, Guoyin Wang, Yuxin Zhao, Yarong Li, Jing Wang, Min Zhang, and Jianping Huang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 9809–9828, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9809-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9809-2021, 2021
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We evaluate the performance of the AMIP6 model in simulating cloud albedo over marine subtropical regions and the impacts of different aerosol types and meteorological factors on the cloud albedo based on multiple satellite datasets and reanalysis data. The results show that AMIP6 demonstrates moderate improvement over AMIP5 in simulating the monthly variation in cloud albedo, and changes in different aerosol types and meteorological factors can explain ~65 % of the changes in the cloud albedo.
Johannes Mohrmann, Robert Wood, Tianle Yuan, Hua Song, Ryan Eastman, and Lazaros Oreopoulos
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 9629–9642, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9629-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9629-2021, 2021
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Observations of marine-boundary-layer conditions are composited by cloud type, based on a new classification dataset. It is found that two cloud types, representing regions of clustered and suppressed low-level clouds, occur in very similar large-scale conditions but are distinguished from each other by considering low-level circulation and surface wind fields, validating prior results from modeling.
Alyson Douglas and Tristan L'Ecuyer
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-446, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-446, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for ACP
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When aerosol enter the atmosphere, they interact with the clouds above in what we term aerosol-cloud interactions, and lead to a series of reactions which delays the onset of rain. This delay may lead to increased rain rates, or invigoration, when the cloud eventually rains. We show that aerosol leads to invigoration in certain environments. The strength of the invigoration depends on how large the cloud is, which suggests that it is highly tied to the organization of the cloud system.
Francesco Cairo, Mauro De Muro, Marcel Snels, Luca Di Liberto, Silvia Bucci, Bernard Legras, Ajil Kottayil, Andrea Scoccione, and Stefano Ghisu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 7947–7961, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7947-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7947-2021, 2021
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A lidar was used in Palau from February–March 2016. Clouds were observed peaking at 3 km below the high cold-point tropopause (CPT). Their occurrence was linked with cold anomalies, while in warm cases, cirrus clouds were restricted to 5 km below the CPT. Thin subvisible cirrus (SVC) near the CPT had distinctive characteristics. They were linked to wave-induced cold anomalies. Back trajectories are mostly compatible with convective outflow, while some distinctive SVC may originate in situ.
Haoran Li, Ottmar Möhler, Tuukka Petäjä, and Dmitri Moisseev
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-332, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-332, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for ACP
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In natural clouds, ice nucleating particles are expected to be rare above −10 °C. In the current manuscript, we found that the formation of ice columns is frequent in stratiform clouds and is associated with increased precipitation intensity and liquid water path. In single-layer shallow clouds, the produciton of ice columns were attributed to secondary ice production, despite that the rime-splintering process is not expected to take place in such clouds.
Edward Gryspeerdt, Tom Goren, and Tristan W. P. Smith
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 6093–6109, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6093-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6093-2021, 2021
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Cloud responses to aerosol are time-sensitive, but this development is rarely observed. This study uses isolated aerosol perturbations from ships to measure this development and shows that macrophysical (width, cloud fraction, detectability) and microphysical (droplet number) properties of ship tracks vary strongly with time since emission, background cloud and meteorological state. This temporal development should be considered when constraining aerosol–cloud interactions with observations.
Tianmeng Chen, Zhanqing Li, Ralph A. Kahn, Chuanfeng Zhao, Daniel Rosenfeld, Jianping Guo, Wenchao Han, and Dandan Chen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 6199–6220, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6199-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6199-2021, 2021
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A convective cloud identification process is developed using geostationary satellite data from Himawari-8.
Convective cloud fraction is generally larger before noon and smaller in the afternoon under polluted conditions, but megacities and complex topography can influence the pattern.
A robust relationship between convective cloud and aerosol loading is found. This pattern varies with terrain height and is modulated by varying thermodynamic, dynamical, and humidity conditions during the day.
Ulrike Proske, Verena Bessenbacher, Zane Dedekind, Ulrike Lohmann, and David Neubauer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 5195–5216, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-5195-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-5195-2021, 2021
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Ice crystals falling out of one cloud can initiate freezing in a second cloud below. We estimate the occurrence frequency of this natural cloud seeding over Switzerland from satellite data and sublimation calculations. We find that such situations with an ice cloud above another cloud are frequent and that the falling crystals survive the fall between two clouds in a significant number of cases, suggesting that natural cloud seeding is an important phenomenon over Switzerland.
Joseph Sedlar, Adele Igel, and Hagen Telg
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 4149–4167, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021, 2021
Julia Maillard, François Ravetta, Jean-Christophe Raut, Vincent Mariage, and Jacques Pelon
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 4079–4101, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4079-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4079-2021, 2021
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Clouds remain a major source of uncertainty in understanding the Arctic climate, due in part to the lack of measurements over the sea ice. In this paper, we exploit a series of lidar profiles acquired from autonomous drifting buoys deployed in the Arctic Ocean and derive a statistic of low cloud frequency and macrophysical properties. We also show that clouds contribute to warm the surface in the shoulder seasons but not significantly from May to September.
Qiang Li and Silke Groß
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-172, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-172, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for ACP
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Aircrafts emit exhaust gases and particles directly into the atmosphere which may contribute to climate change. In this work, we present a significant reduction in the occurrence rate and particle linear depolarization ratio of cirrus cloud based on the analysis of lidar measurements with the CALIPSO satellite during COVID-19 when air traffic was significantly reduced. The findings imply that these clouds had formed in air with less influence by aviation.
Kevin M. Smalley and Anita D. Rapp
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 2765–2779, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-2765-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-2765-2021, 2021
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We use satellite observations of shallow cumulus clouds to investigate the influence of cloud size on the ratio of cloud water path to rainwater (WRR) in different environments. For a fixed temperature and relative humidity, WRR increases with cloud size, but it varies little with aerosols. These results imply that increasing WRR with rising temperature relates not only to deeper clouds but also to more frequent larger clouds.
Iris-Amata Dion, Cyrille Dallet, Philippe Ricaud, Fabien Carminati, Thibaut Dauhut, and Peter Haynes
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 2191–2210, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-2191-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-2191-2021, 2021
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Ice in the tropopause has a strong radiative effect on climate. The amount of ice injected (∆IWC) up to the tropical tropopause layer has been shown to be the highest over the Maritime Continent (MC), a region that includes Indonesia. ∆IWC is studied over islands and sea of the MC. Space-borne observations of ice, precipitation and lightning are used to estimate ∆IWC and are compared to ∆IWC estimated from the ERA5 reanalyses. It is shown that Java is the area of the greatest ∆IWC over the MC.
Claudia J. Stubenrauch, Giacomo Caria, Sofia E. Protopapadaki, and Friederike Hemmer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 1015–1034, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-1015-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-1015-2021, 2021
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Tropical anvils formed by convective outflow play a crucial role in modulating the Earth’s energy budget and heat transport. To explore the relation between these anvils and convection, we built 3D radiative heating fields, based on machine learning employed on cloud and atmospheric properties from IR sounder and meteorological reanalyses, trained on lidar–radar retrievals. The 15-year time series reveals colder convective systems during warm periods, affecting the atmospheric heating structure.
Gregor Pante, Peter Knippertz, Andreas H. Fink, and Anke Kniffka
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 35–55, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-35-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-35-2021, 2021
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Seasonal rainfall amounts along the densely populated West African Guinea coast have been decreasing during the past 35 years, with recently accelerating trends. We find strong indications that this is in part related to increasing human air pollution in the region. Given the fast increase in emissions, the political implications of this work are significant. Reducing air pollution locally and regionally would mitigate an imminent health crisis and socio-economic damage from reduced rainfall.
Cristofer Jimenez, Albert Ansmann, Ronny Engelmann, David Donovan, Aleksey Malinka, Jörg Schmidt, Patric Seifert, and Ulla Wandinger
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 15247–15263, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15247-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15247-2020, 2020
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A novel lidar method to study cloud microphysical properties (of liquid water clouds) and to study aerosol–cloud interaction (ACI) is developed and presented in this paper. In Part 1, the theoretical framework including an error analysis is given together with an overview of the aerosol information that the same lidar system can obtain. The ACI concept based on aerosol and cloud information is also explained. Applications of the proposed approach to lidar measurements are presented in Part 2.
Cristofer Jimenez, Albert Ansmann, Ronny Engelmann, David Donovan, Aleksey Malinka, Patric Seifert, Robert Wiesen, Martin Radenz, Zhenping Yin, Johannes Bühl, Jörg Schmidt, Boris Barja, and Ulla Wandinger
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 15265–15284, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15265-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15265-2020, 2020
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Part 2 presents the application of the dual-FOV polarization lidar technique introduced in Part 1. A lidar system was upgraded with a second polarization telescope, and it was deployed at the southernmost tip of South America. A comparison with alternative remote sensing techniques and the evaluation of the aerosol–cloud–wind relation in a convective boundary layer in pristine marine conditions are presented in two case studies, demonstrating the potential of the approach for ACI studies.
Johannes Quaas, Antti Arola, Brian Cairns, Matthew Christensen, Hartwig Deneke, Annica M. L. Ekman, Graham Feingold, Ann Fridlind, Edward Gryspeerdt, Otto Hasekamp, Zhanqing Li, Antti Lipponen, Po-Lun Ma, Johannes Mülmenstädt, Athanasios Nenes, Joyce E. Penner, Daniel Rosenfeld, Roland Schrödner, Kenneth Sinclair, Odran Sourdeval, Philip Stier, Matthias Tesche, Bastiaan van Diedenhoven, and Manfred Wendisch
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 15079–15099, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15079-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-15079-2020, 2020
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Anthropogenic pollution particles – aerosols – serve as cloud condensation nuclei and thus increase cloud droplet concentration and the clouds' reflection of sunlight (a cooling effect on climate). This Twomey effect is poorly constrained by models and requires satellite data for better quantification. The review summarizes the challenges in properly doing so and outlines avenues for progress towards a better use of aerosol retrievals and better retrievals of droplet concentrations.
Hwayoung Jeoung, Guosheng Liu, Kwonil Kim, Gyuwon Lee, and Eun-Kyoung Seo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 14491–14507, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-14491-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-14491-2020, 2020
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Radar and radiometer observations were used to study cloud liquid and snowfall in three types of snow clouds. While near-surface and shallow clouds have an area fraction of 90 %, deep clouds contribute half of the total snowfall volume. Deeper clouds have heavier snowfall, although cloud liquid is equally abundant in all three cloud types. The skills of a GMI Bayesian algorithm are examined. Snowfall in deep clouds may be reasonably retrieved, but it is challenging for near-surface clouds.
Juan Huo, Yufang Tian, Xue Wu, Congzheng Han, Bo Liu, Yongheng Bi, Shu Duan, and Daren Lyu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 14377–14392, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-14377-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-14377-2020, 2020
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A detailed analysis of ice cloud physical properties is presented based on 4 years of surface Ka-band radar measurements in Beijing, where the summer oceanic monsoon from the ocean and winter continental monsoon prevail alternately. More than 6000 ice cloud clusters were studied to investigate their physical properties, such as height, horizontal extent, temperature dependence and origination type, which can serve as a reference for parameterization and characterization in global climate models.
Jie Gong, Xiping Zeng, Dong L. Wu, S. Joseph Munchak, Xiaowen Li, Stefan Kneifel, Davide Ori, Liang Liao, and Donifan Barahona
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 12633–12653, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12633-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12633-2020, 2020
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This work provides a novel way of using polarized passive microwave measurements to study the interlinked cloud–convection–precipitation processes. The magnitude of differences between polarized radiances is found linked to ice microphysics (shape, size, orientation and density), mesoscale dynamic and thermodynamic structures, and surface precipitation. We conclude that passive sensors with multiple polarized channel pairs may serve as cheaper and useful substitutes for spaceborne radar sensors.
Feng Zhang, Qiu-Run Yu, Jia-Li Mao, Chen Dan, Yanyu Wang, Qianshan He, Tiantao Cheng, Chunhong Chen, Dongwei Liu, and Yanping Gao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 11799–11808, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11799-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11799-2020, 2020
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In this work, we make the three main contributions. (1) We reveal the remarkable differences in the geographical distributions of cirrus over the Tibetan Plateau regarding the cloud top height. (2) The orography, gravity wave, and deep convection determine the formation of cirrus with a cloud top below 9, at 9–12, and above 12 km, respectively. (3) It is the first time the contributions of the Tibetan Plateau to the presence of cirrus on a regional scale are discussed.
Adeyemi A. Adebiyi, Paquita Zuidema, Ian Chang, Sharon P. Burton, and Brian Cairns
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 11025–11043, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11025-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11025-2020, 2020
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Over the southeast Atlantic, interactions between the low-level clouds and the overlying smoke aerosols have previously been highlighted, but no study has yet focused on the presence of the mid-level clouds that complicate the aerosol–cloud interactions. Here we show that these optically thin super-cooled mid-level clouds are relatively common, and they frequently occur at the top of the smoke layer between August and October with significant radiative impacts on the low-level clouds.
Haoran Li, Jussi Tiira, Annakaisa von Lerber, and Dmitri Moisseev
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 9547–9562, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-9547-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-9547-2020, 2020
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A method for classifying rimed and unrimed snow based on X- and Ka-band Doppler radar measurements is developed and applied to synergetic radar observations collected during BAECC 2014. The results show that the radar-observed melting layer properties are highly related to the precipitation intensity. The previously reported bright band sagging is mainly connected to the increase in precipitation intensity, while riming plays a secondary role.
Yulan Hong and Larry Di Girolamo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 8267–8291, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-8267-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-8267-2020, 2020
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Cloud phase plays a crucial role in Earth radiation budget but is not well understood. Using A-Train satellite observations, this study provides climatological studies of cloud phase characteristics over Southeast Asia on multiple meteorological scales. Results show that ice, liquid, and ice over liquid clouds display distinct spatial heterogeneity and spectral radiance features. The intraseasonal and interannual behaviors of cloud phases are useful to track the MJO and ENSO.
Scott E. Giangrande, Dié Wang, and David B. Mechem
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 7489–7507, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7489-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7489-2020, 2020
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The Amazon basin experiences prolific and diverse cloud conditions that are strongly influenced by (and influence via feedbacks) seasonal shifts in the local conditions and larger-scale atmospheric circulations. The primary atmospheric regimes observed during a heavily instrumented 2-year Amazon deployment are classified. We assess the potential atmospheric controls on convective clouds, precipitation, and the propensity for these regimes to promote extremes in precipitation.
Josué Gehring, Annika Oertel, Étienne Vignon, Nicolas Jullien, Nikola Besic, and Alexis Berne
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 7373–7392, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7373-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7373-2020, 2020
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In this study, we analyse how large-scale meteorological conditions influenced the local enhancement of snowfall during an intense precipitation event in Korea. We used atmospheric models, weather radars and snowflake images. We found out that a rising airstream in the warm sector of the low pressure system associated to this event influenced the evolution of snowfall. This study highlights the importance of interactions between large and local scales in this intense precipitation event.
Timothy W. Juliano and Zachary J. Lebo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 7125–7138, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7125-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-7125-2020, 2020
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In this study, we use a machine learning method to examine the relationship between synoptic-scale changes in the North Pacific High structure and maritime cloud properties. Our novel approach suggests that there is a wide range (>30 W m−2, ~20 % of magnitude) of possible shortwave cloud radiative effect that is a clear function of the circulation pattern. We hope that this work will help improve fundamental understanding of the sensitivity of the climate system to various warm-cloud regimes.
Alyson Douglas and Tristan L'Ecuyer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 6225–6241, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-6225-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-6225-2020, 2020
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Aerosols, or small, suspended droplets in the atmosphere, are released from anthropogenic activity and interact with warm clouds, leading to changes in the clouds' brightness and size. Our study evaluates how aerosols alter warm clouds and their ability to cool the Earth's surface. We find aerosols make clouds brighter and grow larger in the atmosphere; however, the cooling effect due to whiter, brighter clouds is 5 times the cooling due to an increased extent.
Elena Ruiz-Donoso, André Ehrlich, Michael Schäfer, Evelyn Jäkel, Vera Schemann, Susanne Crewell, Mario Mech, Birte Solveig Kulla, Leif-Leonard Kliesch, Roland Neuber, and Manfred Wendisch
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 5487–5511, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-5487-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-5487-2020, 2020
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Mixed-phase clouds, formed of water droplets and ice crystals, appear frequently in Arctic regions. Characterizing the distribution of liquid water and ice inside the cloud appropriately is important because it influences the cloud's impact on the surface temperature. In this study, we combined images of the cloud top with measurements inside the cloud to analyze in detail the 3D spatial distribution of liquid and ice in two mixed-phase clouds occurring under different meteorological scenarios.
Tatiana Nomokonova, Kerstin Ebell, Ulrich Löhnert, Marion Maturilli, and Christoph Ritter
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 5157–5173, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-5157-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-5157-2020, 2020
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This paper presents an influence of water vapor anomalies on cloud properties and their radiative effect at Ny-Ålesund. The study is based on a 2.5-year active and passive cloud observation and a radiative transfer model. The results show that moist and dry conditions are related to strong changes in cloud occurrence, phase partitioning, water path, and, consequently, modulate the surface radiative budget.
Kalliopi Artemis Voudouri, Elina Giannakaki, Mika Komppula, and Dimitris Balis
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 4427–4444, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-4427-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-4427-2020, 2020
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In this paper we present the variability in cirrus cloud properties using a PollyXT Raman lidar over high and tropical latitudes. The kind of information presented here can be rather useful in the cirrus parameterisations required as input to radiative transfer models and can be a complementary tool for satellite products that cannot provide cloud vertical structure.
Anna Possner, Ryan Eastman, Frida Bender, and Franziska Glassmeier
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3609–3621, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3609-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3609-2020, 2020
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Cloud water content and the number of droplets inside clouds covary with boundary layer depth. This covariation may amplify the change in water content due to a change in droplet number inferred from long-term observations. Taking this into account shows that the change in water content for increased droplet number in observations and high-resolution simulations agrees in shallow boundary layers. Meanwhile, deep boundary layers are under-sampled in process-scale simulations and observations.
Xiaojian Zheng, Baike Xi, Xiquan Dong, Timothy Logan, Yuan Wang, and Peng Wu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3483–3501, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3483-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3483-2020, 2020
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The continental low-level stratiform cloud susceptibilities to aerosols were investigated under different absorptive aerosol regimes. The weakly absorbing aerosols, which are more hygroscopic, can better activate as cloud condensation nuclei. The favorable thermodynamic condition enhances the cloud susceptibility, while the cloud-layer heating effect induced by strongly absorbing aerosols dampens the cloud susceptibility. Overall, the clouds are more susceptible to the weakly absorbing aerosols.
Rosa Gierens, Stefan Kneifel, Matthew D. Shupe, Kerstin Ebell, Marion Maturilli, and Ulrich Löhnert
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3459–3481, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3459-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3459-2020, 2020
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Multiyear statistics of persistent low-level mixed-phase clouds observed at an Arctic fjord environment in Svalbard are presented. The effects the local boundary layer (i.e. the fjords' wind climate and surface coupling), regional wind direction, and seasonality have on the cloud occurrence and properties are evaluated using a synergy of ground-based remote sensing methods and auxiliary data. The phenomena considered were found to modify the amount of liquid and ice in the studied clouds.
Hendrik Andersen, Jan Cermak, Julia Fuchs, Peter Knippertz, Marco Gaetani, Julian Quinting, Sebastian Sippel, and Roland Vogt
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3415–3438, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3415-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3415-2020, 2020
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Fog and low clouds (FLCs) are an essential but poorly understood element of Namib regional climate. Here, a satellite-based data set of FLCs in central Namib, reanalysis data, and back trajectories are used to systematically analyze conditions when FLCs occur. Synoptic-scale mechanisms are identified that influence the formation of FLCs and the onshore advection of marine boundary-layer air masses. The findings lead to a new conceptual model of mechanisms that drive FLC variability in the Namib.
Claudia Unglaub, Karoline Block, Johannes Mülmenstädt, Odran Sourdeval, and Johannes Quaas
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 2407–2418, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2407-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2407-2020, 2020
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In cloud research, it is necessary to classify clouds. The World Meteorological Organization proposes distinguishing stratiform and cumuliform clouds in three altitude layers. The paper explains why previous approaches to classify clouds fail for many applications and proposes a new classification on the basis of new approaches for satellite retrievals to derive cloud-base height, in combination with cloud inhomogeneity. It is demonstrated that this discriminates cloud characteristics well.
Diego Villanueva, Bernd Heinold, Patric Seifert, Hartwig Deneke, Martin Radenz, and Ina Tegen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 2177–2199, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2177-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-2177-2020, 2020
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Spaceborne retrievals of cloud phase were analysed together with an atmospheric composition model to assess the global frequency of ice and liquid clouds. This analysis showed that at equal temperature the average occurrence of ice clouds increases for higher dust mixing ratios on a day-to-day basis in the middle and high latitudes. This indicates that mineral dust may have a strong impact on the occurrence of ice clouds even in remote areas.
Yilun Chen, Guangcan Chen, Chunguang Cui, Aoqi Zhang, Rong Wan, Shengnan Zhou, Dongyong Wang, and Yunfei Fu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 1131–1145, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-1131-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-1131-2020, 2020
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The vertical evolution of the cloud effective radius reflects the precipitation-forming process. We developed an algorithm for retrieving it based on objective cloud-cluster identification rather than the subjective polygon of the conventional method. The profile shows completely different morphologies in different life stages of the cloud cluster, which is important in the characterization of the formation of precipitation and the temporal evolution of microphysical processes.
Amir Erfanian and Rong Fu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 15199–15216, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-15199-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-15199-2019, 2019
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An eastward advection of dry and warm air in spring was identified as a major drought onset mechanism over the US Great Plains (GP). Further breakdown of the zonal advection into the dynamic versus thermodynamic contributions revealed dominance of the latter in the tropospheric drying observed during the onset of GP 2011 and 2012 droughts. The dependence of thermodynamic advection on moisture gradient links the spring precipitation in the Rockies and US southwest to the GP summer precipitation.
Artem G. Feofilov and Claudia J. Stubenrauch
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 13957–13972, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-13957-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-13957-2019, 2019
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Clouds play an important role in the energy budget of the planet: optically thick clouds reflect the incoming solar radiation leading to cooling of the Earth, while thinner clouds act as
greenhouse filmspreventing escape of the Earth’s infrared radiation to space. Satellite observations provide a continuous survey of clouds over the whole globe. In this work, we use a combination of two space-borne sounders to retrieve and analyse the characteristics of diurnal variation of high-level clouds.
Nils Madenach, Cintia Carbajal Henken, René Preusker, Odran Sourdeval, and Jürgen Fischer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 13535–13546, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-13535-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-13535-2019, 2019
Kadiri Saikranthi, Basivi Radhakrishna, Thota Narayana Rao, and Sreedharan Krishnakumari Satheesh
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 10423–10432, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-10423-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-10423-2019, 2019
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Recent studies have shown that simulation of monsoons can be improved with an exact representation of SST–precipitation relationship. The vertical structure of precipitation with SST is distinctly different over the Arabian Sea than over the Bay of Bengal. The reflectivity profiles show variation with SST over the Arabian Sea and do not show considerable variation with SST over the Bay of Bengal. The variations in reflectivity profiles seem to originate at the cloud formation stage itself.
Ralf Bennartz, Frank Fell, Claire Pettersen, Matthew D. Shupe, and Dirk Schuettemeyer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 8101–8121, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-8101-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-8101-2019, 2019
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The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is rapidly melting. Snowfall is the only source of ice mass over the GrIS. We use satellite observations to assess how much snow on average falls over the GrIS and what the annual cycle and spatial distribution of snowfall is. We find the annual mean snowfall over the GrIS inferred from CloudSat to be 34 ± 7.5 cm yr−1 liquid equivalent.
Andrew Geiss and Roger Marchand
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 7547–7565, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7547-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7547-2019, 2019
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The 13-year trends in cloud occurrence, observed by NASA's Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer, over the world's extratropical ocean basins are compared to trends in meteorological variables. We identify several patterns of changing cloud occurrence that correspond to specific patterns in trending meteorology. We find that many of these trends are related to changes in major modes of climate variability.
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Short summary
We present a new approach to evaluate ERA-Interim reanalysis clouds using satellite observations. A simplified satellite simulator was developed that uses reanalysis fields to emulate clouds as they would have been seen by those satellite sensors which were used to compose Cloud_cci observational cloud datasets. Our study facilitates an adequate evaluation of modelled ERA-Interim clouds using observational datasets, also taking into account systematic uncertainties in the observations.
We present a new approach to evaluate ERA-Interim reanalysis clouds using satellite...
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