Articles | Volume 18, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7237-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-7237-2018
Research article
 | 
25 May 2018
Research article |  | 25 May 2018

Competition for water vapour results in suppression of ice formation in mixed-phase clouds

Emma L. Simpson, Paul J. Connolly, and Gordon McFiggans

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Subject: Clouds and Precipitation | Research Activity: Atmospheric Modelling and Data Analysis | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Physics (physical properties and processes)
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Cited articles

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Ansmann, A., Tesche, M., Althausen, D., Müller, D., Seifert, P., Freudenthaler, V., Heese, B., Wiegner, M., Pisani, G., Knippertz, P., and Dubovik, O.: Influence of Saharan dust on cloud glaciation in southern Morocco during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment, J. Geophys. Res., 113, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JD008785, 2008.
Chuang, P., Y., Charlson, R. J., and Seinfeld, J. H.: Kinetic limitations on droplet formation in clouds, Nature, 390, 594–596, 1997.
Connolly, P. J., Möhler, O., Field, P. R., Saathoff, H., Burgess, R., Choularton, T., and Gallagher, M.: Studies of heterogeneous freezing by three different desert dust samples, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 9, 2805–2824, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-9-2805-2009, 2009.
de Boer, G., Hasino, T., and Tripoli, G. J.: Ice nucleation through immersion freezing in mixed-phase stratiform clouds: Theory and numerical simulations, Atmos. Res., 96, 315–324, 2010.
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Short summary
This study explores the process of ice formation in clouds by conducting computer model simulations and laboratory experiments in a cloud chamber. We show that the formation of ice in clouds can be limited by the presence of atmospheric aerosol particles and that further research is required to identify the requirements for freezing, e.g. minimum mass of water, in order to accurately calculate ice formation and thus improve climate and weather prediction.
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