Research article
| Highlight paper
06 Jul 2018
Research article
| Highlight paper
| 06 Jul 2018
The diurnal cycle of cloud profiles over land and ocean between 51° S and 51° N, seen by the CATS spaceborne lidar from the International Space Station
Vincent Noel et al.
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Artem Feofilov, Hélène Chepfer, Vincent Noël, and Frederic Szczap
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The response of clouds to human-induced climate warming remains the largest source of uncertainty in model predictions of climate. We consider cloud retrievals from spaceborne observations, the existing CALIOP lidar and future ATLID lidar, show how they compare for the same scenes, and discuss the advantage of adding a new lidar for detecting cloud changes in the long run. We show that the ATLID's advanced technology should allow detecting thinner clouds during daytime than before.
Matthias Tesche and Vincent Noel
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4225–4240, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4225-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4225-2022, 2022
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Mid-level and high clouds can be considered natural laboratories for studying cloud glaciation in the atmosphere. While they can be conveniently observed from ground with lidar, such measurements require a clear line of sight between the instrument and the target cloud. Here, observations of clouds with two spaceborne lidars are used to assess where ground-based lidar measurements of mid- and upper-level clouds are least affected by the light-attenuating effect of low-level clouds.
Artem G. Feofilov, Hélène Chepfer, Vincent Noël, Rodrigo Guzman, Cyprien Gindre, Po-Lun Ma, and Marjolaine Chiriaco
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1055–1074, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1055-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1055-2022, 2022
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Space-borne lidars have been providing invaluable information of atmospheric optical properties since 2006, and new lidar missions are on the way to ensure continuous observations. In this work, we compare the clouds estimated from space-borne ALADIN and CALIOP lidar observations. The analysis of collocated data shows that the agreement between the retrieved clouds is good up to 3 km height. Above that, ALADIN detects 40 % less clouds than CALIOP, except for polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs).
Damien Héron, Stephanie Evan, Joris Pianezze, Thibaut Dauhut, Jerome Brioude, Karen Rosenlof, Vincent Noel, Soline Bielli, Christelle Barthe, and Jean-Pierre Cammas
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2020-870, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2020-870, 2020
Publication in ACP not foreseen
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Upward transport within tropical cyclones of water vapor from the low troposphere into the colder upper troposphere/lower stratosphere can result in the moistening of this region. Balloon observations and model simulations of tropical cyclone Enawo in the less-observed Southwest Indian Ocean (the third most tropical cyclone active region on Earth) are used to show how convective overshoots within Enawo penetrate the tropopause directly, injecting water/ice into the stratosphere.
Thibaut Dauhut, Vincent Noel, and Iris-Amata Dion
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3921–3929, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3921-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3921-2020, 2020
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We document for the first time the diurnal cycle of the clouds in the tropical stratosphere, using the measurements from the lidar on board the International Space Station. The stratospheric clouds are concentrated over the convective centers. Their cloud fraction is minimal and limited to the vicinity of the tropopause during daytime. It presents two maxima: one in the early night and one shortly after midnight, when clouds also extend deeper in the stratosphere.
Thibault Vaillant de Guélis, Hélène Chepfer, Vincent Noel, Rodrigo Guzman, Philippe Dubuisson, David M. Winker, and Seiji Kato
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 4659–4685, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-4659-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-4659-2017, 2017
V. Noel, H. Chepfer, C. Hoareau, M. Reverdy, and G. Cesana
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 1597–1603, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1597-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1597-2014, 2014
C. Hoareau, P. Keckhut, V. Noel, H. Chepfer, and J.-L. Baray
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EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-1187, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-1187, 2022
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The response of clouds to human-induced climate warming remains the largest source of uncertainty in model predictions of climate. We consider cloud retrievals from spaceborne observations, the existing CALIOP lidar and future ATLID lidar, show how they compare for the same scenes, and discuss the advantage of adding a new lidar for detecting cloud changes in the long run. We show that the ATLID's advanced technology should allow detecting thinner clouds during daytime than before.
Matthias Tesche and Vincent Noel
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4225–4240, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4225-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4225-2022, 2022
Short summary
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Mid-level and high clouds can be considered natural laboratories for studying cloud glaciation in the atmosphere. While they can be conveniently observed from ground with lidar, such measurements require a clear line of sight between the instrument and the target cloud. Here, observations of clouds with two spaceborne lidars are used to assess where ground-based lidar measurements of mid- and upper-level clouds are least affected by the light-attenuating effect of low-level clouds.
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Space-borne lidars have been providing invaluable information of atmospheric optical properties since 2006, and new lidar missions are on the way to ensure continuous observations. In this work, we compare the clouds estimated from space-borne ALADIN and CALIOP lidar observations. The analysis of collocated data shows that the agreement between the retrieved clouds is good up to 3 km height. Above that, ALADIN detects 40 % less clouds than CALIOP, except for polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs).
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Publication in ACP not foreseen
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Upward transport within tropical cyclones of water vapor from the low troposphere into the colder upper troposphere/lower stratosphere can result in the moistening of this region. Balloon observations and model simulations of tropical cyclone Enawo in the less-observed Southwest Indian Ocean (the third most tropical cyclone active region on Earth) are used to show how convective overshoots within Enawo penetrate the tropopause directly, injecting water/ice into the stratosphere.
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Marjolaine Chiriaco, Jean-Charles Dupont, Sophie Bastin, Jordi Badosa, Julio Lopez, Martial Haeffelin, Helene Chepfer, and Rodrigo Guzman
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Thibault Vaillant de Guélis, Hélène Chepfer, Vincent Noel, Rodrigo Guzman, Philippe Dubuisson, David M. Winker, and Seiji Kato
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Kenneth Sinclair, Bastiaan van Diedenhoven, Brian Cairns, John Yorks, Andrzej Wasilewski, and Matthew McGill
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V. Noel, H. Chepfer, C. Hoareau, M. Reverdy, and G. Cesana
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 1597–1603, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1597-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1597-2014, 2014
C. Hoareau, P. Keckhut, V. Noel, H. Chepfer, and J.-L. Baray
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 6951–6963, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-6951-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-6951-2013, 2013
M. Reverdy, V. Noel, H. Chepfer, and B. Legras
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 12, 12081–12101, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-12-12081-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-12-12081-2012, 2012
Related subject area
Subject: Clouds and Precipitation | Research Activity: Remote Sensing | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Physics (physical properties and processes)
Diurnal cycles of cloud cover and its vertical distribution over the Tibetan Plateau revealed by satellite observations, reanalysis datasets, and CMIP6 outputs
Satellite observations of seasonality and long-term trends in cirrus cloud properties over Europe: investigation of possible aviation impacts
Ice crystal characterization in cirrus clouds III: retrieval of ice crystal shape and roughness from observations of halo displays
Distinct regional meteorological influences on low cloud albedo susceptibility over global marine stratocumulus regions
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An evaluation of the liquid cloud droplet effective radius derived from MODIS, airborne remote sensing, and in situ measurements from CAMP2Ex
A Lagrangian analysis of pockets of open cells over the southeastern Pacific
The formation and composition of the Mount Everest plume in winter
New insights on the prevalence of drizzle in marine stratocumulus clouds based on a machine learning algorithm applied to radar Doppler spectra
Addressing the difficulties in quantifying droplet number response to aerosol from satellite observations
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Stability-dependent increases in liquid water with droplet number in the Arctic
Lightning activity in northern Europe during a stormy winter: disruptions of weather patterns originating in global climate phenomena
A climatology of open and closed mesoscale cellular convection over the Southern Ocean derived from Himawari-8 observations
Methodology to determine the coupling of continental clouds with surface and boundary layer height under cloudy conditions from lidar and meteorological data
Albedo susceptibility of northeastern Pacific stratocumulus: the role of covarying meteorological conditions
Opportunistic experiments to constrain aerosol effective radiative forcing
Environmental effects on aerosol–cloud interaction in non-precipitating marine boundary layer (MBL) clouds over the eastern North Atlantic
Hemispheric contrasts in ice formation in stratiform mixed-phase clouds: disentangling the role of aerosol and dynamics with ground-based remote sensing
Microphysical process of precipitating hydrometeors from warm-front mid-level stratiform clouds revealed by ground-based lidar observations
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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
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Yuxin Zhao, Jiming Li, Lijie Zhang, Cong Deng, Yarong Li, Bida Jian, and Jianping Huang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 743–769, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-743-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-743-2023, 2023
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Diurnal variations of clouds play an important role in the radiative budget and precipitation. Based on satellite observations, reanalysis, and CMIP6 outputs, the diurnal variations in total cloud cover and cloud vertical distribution over the Tibetan Plateau are explored. The diurnal cycle of cirrus is a key focus and found to have different characteristics from those found in the tropics. The relationship between the diurnal cycle of cirrus and meteorological factors is also discussed.
Qiang Li and Silke Groß
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 15963–15980, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15963-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15963-2022, 2022
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The IPCC report identified that cirrus clouds have a significant impact on the radiation balance comparable to the CO2 effects, which, however, is still hard to parameterize. The current study investigates the possible impact of aviation on cirrus properties based on the analysis of 10-year lidar measurements of CALIPSO. The results reveal that there is a significant positive trend in cirrus depolarization ratio in the last 10 years before COVID-19, which is strongly correlated with aviation.
Linda Forster and Bernhard Mayer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 15179–15205, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15179-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15179-2022, 2022
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We present a novel retrieval using ground-based imaging observations of halo displays together with radiative transfer simulations to help improve our understanding of ice crystal properties representative of cirrus clouds. Analysis of 4400 calibrated HaloCam images featuring a 22° halo revealed aggregates of hexagonal columns of 20 µm effective radius with a mixture of about 37 % smooth and 63% severely roughened surfaces as the best match in general.
Jianhao Zhang and Graham Feingold
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-1127, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-1127, 2022
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Using observations from the space, we show maps of potential cloud brightness changes in response to increases in cloud droplets. We find that the environmental conditions in which these cloud reside covary in time differently from one part of the world to another, leaving distinct regional fingerprints of cloud brightness changes, which are absent when data is aggregated globally. We stress the importance of embracing, instead of untangling, the covariability between meteorology and aerosol.
Yun He, Zhenping Yin, Fuchao Liu, and Fan Yi
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 13067–13085, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-13067-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-13067-2022, 2022
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A method is proposed to identify the sole presence of heterogeneous nucleation and competition between heterogeneous and homogeneous nucleation for dust-related cirrus clouds by characterizing the relationship between dust ice-nucleating particle concentration calculated from CALIOP using the POLIPHON method and in-cloud ice crystal number concentration from the DARDAR-Nice dataset. Two typical cirrus cases are shown as a demonstration, and the proposed method can be extended to a global scale.
Frederic Tridon, Israel Silber, Alessandro Battaglia, Stefan Kneifel, Ann Fridlind, Petros Kalogeras, and Ranvir Dhillon
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 12467–12491, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12467-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12467-2022, 2022
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The role of ice precipitation in the Earth water budget is not well known because ice particles are complex, and their formation involves intricate processes. Riming of ice crystals by supercooled water droplets is an efficient process, but little is known about its importance at high latitudes. In this work, by exploiting the deployment of an unprecedented number of remote sensing systems in Antarctica, we find that riming occurs at much lower temperatures compared with the mid-latitudes.
Leonie von Terzi, José Dias Neto, Davide Ori, Alexander Myagkov, and Stefan Kneifel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 11795–11821, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11795-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11795-2022, 2022
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We present a statistical analysis of ice microphysical processes (IMP) in mid-latitude clouds. Combining various radar approaches, we find that the IMP active at −20 to −10 °C seems to be the main driver of ice particle size, shape and concentration. The strength of aggregation at −20 to −10 °C correlates with the increase in concentration and aspect ratio of locally formed ice particles. Despite ongoing aggregation, the concentration of ice particles stays enhanced until −4 °C.
Edward Gryspeerdt, Franziska Glassmeier, Graham Feingold, Fabian Hoffmann, and Rebecca J. Murray-Watson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 11727–11738, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11727-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11727-2022, 2022
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The response of clouds to changes in aerosol remains a large uncertainty in our understanding of the climate. Studies typically look at aerosol and cloud processes in snapshot images, measuring all properties at the same time. Here we use multiple images to characterise how cloud temporal development responds to aerosol. We find a reduction in liquid water path with increasing aerosol, party due to feedbacks. This suggests the aerosol impact on cloud water may be weaker than in previous studies.
Gerald G. Mace, Sally Benson, Ruhi Humphries, Mathew Peter Gombert, and Elizabeth Sterner
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-571, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-571, 2022
Revised manuscript accepted for ACP
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The number cloud droplets per unit volume is a significantly important property of clouds that controls their reflective properties. Computer models of the Earth's atmosphere and climate have low skill at predicting the reflective properties of Southern Ocean clouds. Here we investigate the properties of those clouds using satellite data and find that the cloud droplet number in the Southern Ocean is related to the oceanic phytoplankton abundance near Antarctica.
Yabin Gou, Haonan Chen, and Lulin Xue
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-495, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-495, 2022
Revised manuscript accepted for ACP
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This article investigates the complex precipitation microphysics associated with super typhoon Lekima (2019) using a host of in situ and remote sensing observations, including rain gauge and disdrometer data, and polarimetric radar observations. The impacts of precipitation microphysics on multi-source data consistency and radar precipitation estimation are quantified. It is concluded that the dynamical precipitation microphysical processes must be considered in radar precipitation estimation.
Jessica Danker, Odran Sourdeval, Isabel L. McCoy, Robert Wood, and Anna Possner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10247–10265, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10247-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10247-2022, 2022
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Using spaceborne lidar-radar retrievals, we show that seasonal changes in cloud phase outweigh changes in cloud-phase statistics across cloud morphologies at given cloud-top temperatures. These results show that cloud morphology does not seem to pose a primary constraint on cloud-phase statistics in the Southern Ocean. Meanwhile, larger changes in in-cloud albedo across cloud morphologies are observed in supercooled liquid rather than mixed-phase stratocumuli.
Britta Schäfer, Tim Carlsen, Ingrid Hanssen, Michael Gausa, and Trude Storelvmo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 9537–9551, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-9537-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-9537-2022, 2022
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Cloud properties are important for the surface radiation budget. This study presents cold-cloud observations based on lidar measurements from the Norwegian Arctic between 2011 and 2017. Using statistical assessments and case studies, we give an overview of the macro- and microphysical properties of these clouds and demonstrate the capabilities of long-term cloud observations in the Norwegian Arctic from the ground-based lidar at Andenes.
Dongwei Fu, Larry Di Girolamo, Robert M. Rauber, Greg M. McFarquhar, Stephen W. Nesbitt, Jesse Loveridge, Yulan Hong, Bastiaan van Diedenhoven, Brian Cairns, Mikhail D. Alexandrov, Paul Lawson, Sarah Woods, Simone Tanelli, Sebastian Schmidt, Chris Hostetler, and Amy Jo Scarino
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 8259–8285, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-8259-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-8259-2022, 2022
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Satellite-retrieved cloud microphysics are widely used in climate research because of their central role in water and energy cycles. Here, we provide the first detailed investigation of retrieved cloud drop sizes from in situ and various satellite and airborne remote sensing techniques applied to real cumulus cloud fields. We conclude that the most widely used passive remote sensing method employed in climate research produces high biases of 6–8 µm (60 %–80 %) caused by 3-D radiative effects.
Kevin M. Smalley, Matthew D. Lebsock, Ryan Eastman, Mark Smalley, and Mikael K. Witte
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 8197–8219, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-8197-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-8197-2022, 2022
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We use geostationary satellite observations to track pockets of open-cell (POC) stratocumulus and analyze how precipitation, cloud microphysics, and the environment change. Precipitation becomes more intense, corresponding to increasing effective radius and decreasing number concentrations, while the environment remains relatively unchanged. This implies that changes in cloud microphysics are more important than the environment to POC development.
Edward E. Hindman and Scott Lindstrom
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 7995–8008, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7995-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7995-2022, 2022
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Winds buffeting the Mt. Everest massif often produce plumes. This systematic study identified plumes from daily observations of real-time, on-line images from a geosynchronous meteorological satellite. The corresponding meteorological data were used with a cloud-forming model to show the plumes were composed, depending on the temperature, of droplets, crystals or both. They were not composed of resuspended snow, which is a common belief. We estimated the plumes may produce significant snowfall.
Zeen Zhu, Pavlos Kollias, Edward Luke, and Fan Yang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 7405–7416, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7405-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7405-2022, 2022
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Drizzle (small rain droplets) is an important component of warm clouds; however, its existence is poorly understood. In this study, we capitalized on a machine-learning algorithm to develop a drizzle detection method. We applied this algorithm to investigate drizzle occurrence and found out that drizzle is far more ubiquitous than previously thought. This study demonstrates the ubiquitous nature of drizzle in clouds and will improve understanding of the associated microphysical process.
Hailing Jia, Johannes Quaas, Edward Gryspeerdt, Christoph Böhm, and Odran Sourdeval
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 7353–7372, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7353-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7353-2022, 2022
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Aerosol–cloud interaction is the most uncertain component of the anthropogenic forcing of the climate. By combining satellite and reanalysis data, we show that the strength of the Twomey effect (S) increases remarkably with vertical velocity. Both the confounding effect of aerosol–precipitation interaction and the lack of vertical co-location between aerosol and cloud are found to overestimate S, whereas the retrieval biases in aerosol and cloud appear to underestimate S.
Theresa Mieslinger, Bjorn Stevens, Tobias Kölling, Manfred Brath, Martin Wirth, and Stefan A. Buehler
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 6879–6898, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-6879-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-6879-2022, 2022
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The trades are home to a plethora of small cumulus clouds that are often barely visible to the human eye and difficult to detect with active and passive remote sensing methods. With the help of a new method and by means of high-resolution data we can detect small and particularly thin clouds. We find that optically thin clouds are a common phenomenon in the trades, covering a large area and influencing the radiative effect of clouds if they are undetected and contaminate the cloud-free signal.
Rebecca J. Murray-Watson and Edward Gryspeerdt
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 5743–5756, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5743-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5743-2022, 2022
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Clouds are important to the Arctic surface energy budget, but the impact of aerosols on their properties is largely uncertain. This work shows that the response of liquid water path to cloud droplet number increases is strongly dependent on lower tropospheric stability (LTS), with weaker cooling effects in polluted clouds and at high LTS. LTS is projected to decrease in a warmer Arctic, reducing the cooling effect of aerosols and producing a positive, aerosol-dependent cloud feedback.
Ivana Kolmašová, Ondřej Santolík, and Kateřina Rosická
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 3379–3389, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-3379-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-3379-2022, 2022
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The 2014–2015 winter brought an enormous number of lightning strokes to northern Europe, about 4 times more than their long-term median over the last decade. This unusual production of lightning, concentrated above the ocean and along the western coastal areas, was probably due to a combination of large-scale climatic events like El Niño and the North Atlantic Oscillation, causing increased sea surface temperatures and updraft strengths, which acted as additional thundercloud-charging drivers.
Francisco Lang, Luis Ackermann, Yi Huang, Son C. H. Truong, Steven T. Siems, and Michael J. Manton
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 2135–2152, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-2135-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-2135-2022, 2022
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Marine low-level clouds cover vast areas of the Southern Ocean, and they are essential to the Earth system energy balance. We use 3 years of satellite observations to group low-level clouds by their spatial structure using a pattern-recognizing program. We studied two primary cloud type patterns, i.e. open and closed clouds. Open clouds are uniformly distributed over the storm track, while closed clouds are most predominant in the southeastern Indian Ocean. Closed clouds exhibit a daily cycle.
Tianning Su, Youtong Zheng, and Zhanqing Li
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 1453–1466, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-1453-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-1453-2022, 2022
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To enrich our understanding of coupling of continental clouds, we developed a novel methodology to determine cloud coupling state from a lidar and a suite of surface meteorological instruments. This method is built upon advancement in our understanding of fundamental boundary layer processes and clouds. As the first remote sensing method for determining the coupling state of low clouds over land, this methodology paves a solid ground for further investigating the coupled land–atmosphere system.
Jianhao Zhang, Xiaoli Zhou, Tom Goren, and Graham Feingold
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 861–880, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-861-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-861-2022, 2022
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Oceanic liquid-form clouds are effective sunlight reflectors. Their brightness is highly sensitive to changes in the amount of aerosol particles in the atmosphere and the state of the atmosphere they reside in. This study quantifies this sensitivity using long-term satellite observations and finds an overall cloud brightening (a cooling effect) potential and an essential role of the covarying meteorological conditions in governing this sensitivity for northeastern Pacific stratocumulus.
Matthew W. Christensen, Andrew Gettelman, Jan Cermak, Guy Dagan, Michael Diamond, Alyson Douglas, Graham Feingold, Franziska Glassmeier, Tom Goren, Daniel P. Grosvenor, Edward Gryspeerdt, Ralph Kahn, Zhanqing Li, Po-Lun Ma, Florent Malavelle, Isabel L. McCoy, Daniel T. McCoy, Greg McFarquhar, Johannes Mülmenstädt, Sandip Pal, Anna Possner, Adam Povey, Johannes Quaas, Daniel Rosenfeld, Anja Schmidt, Roland Schrödner, Armin Sorooshian, Philip Stier, Velle Toll, Duncan Watson-Parris, Robert Wood, Mingxi Yang, and Tianle Yuan
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 641–674, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-641-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-641-2022, 2022
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Trace gases and aerosols (tiny airborne particles) are released from a variety of point sources around the globe. Examples include volcanoes, industrial chimneys, forest fires, and ship stacks. These sources provide opportunistic experiments with which to quantify the role of aerosols in modifying cloud properties. We review the current state of understanding on the influence of aerosol on climate built from the wide range of natural and anthropogenic laboratories investigated in recent decades.
Xiaojian Zheng, Baike Xi, Xiquan Dong, Peng Wu, Timothy Logan, and Yuan Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 335–354, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-335-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-335-2022, 2022
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This study uses ground-based observations to investigate the physical processes in the aerosol–cloud interactions in non-precipitating marine boundary layer clouds, over the eastern North Atlantic Ocean. Results show that the cloud responses to the aerosols are diminished with limited water vapor supply, while they are enhanced with increasing water vapor availability. The clouds are found to be most sensitive to the aerosols under sufficient water vapor and strong boundary layer turbulence.
Martin Radenz, Johannes Bühl, Patric Seifert, Holger Baars, Ronny Engelmann, Boris Barja González, Rodanthi-Elisabeth Mamouri, Félix Zamorano, and Albert Ansmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 17969–17994, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17969-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17969-2021, 2021
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This study brings together long-term ground-based remote-sensing observations of mixed-phase clouds at three key locations of aerosol–cloud interactions in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere midlatitudes. The findings contribute several new aspects on the nature of the excess of supercooled liquid clouds in the Southern Hemisphere, such as a long-term lidar-based estimate of ice-nucleating particle profiles as well as the effects of boundary layer coupling and gravity waves on ice formation.
Yang Yi, Fan Yi, Fuchao Liu, Yunpeng Zhang, Changming Yu, and Yun He
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 17649–17664, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17649-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17649-2021, 2021
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Our lidar observations reveal the complete microphysical process of hydrometeors falling from mid-level stratiform clouds. We find that the surface rainfall begins as supercooled mixed-phase hydrometeors fall out of a liquid parent cloud base. We find also that the collision–coalescence growth of precipitating raindrops and subsequent spontaneous breakup always occur around 0.6 km altitude during surface rainfalls. Our findings provide new insights into stratiform precipitation formation.
Silke Trömel, Clemens Simmer, Ulrich Blahak, Armin Blanke, Sabine Doktorowski, Florian Ewald, Michael Frech, Mathias Gergely, Martin Hagen, Tijana Janjic, Heike Kalesse-Los, Stefan Kneifel, Christoph Knote, Jana Mendrok, Manuel Moser, Gregor Köcher, Kai Mühlbauer, Alexander Myagkov, Velibor Pejcic, Patric Seifert, Prabhakar Shrestha, Audrey Teisseire, Leonie von Terzi, Eleni Tetoni, Teresa Vogl, Christiane Voigt, Yuefei Zeng, Tobias Zinner, and Johannes Quaas
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 17291–17314, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17291-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17291-2021, 2021
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The article introduces the ACP readership to ongoing research in Germany on cloud- and precipitation-related process information inherent in polarimetric radar measurements, outlines pathways to inform atmospheric models with radar-based information, and points to remaining challenges towards an improved fusion of radar polarimetry and atmospheric modelling.
Raphaela Vogel, Heike Konow, Hauke Schulz, and Paquita Zuidema
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16609–16630, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16609-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16609-2021, 2021
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The shallow cumulus clouds that populate the trade-wind regions can produce substantial amounts of rain. Before reaching the surface, part of the rain can evaporate and form pools of cold air that spread at the surface as density currents. We use 10 years of data from Barbados to show that such cold pools occur on 3 out of 4 d, that cold-pool periods are 90 % cloudier relative to the average winter conditions, and that they are connected to specific patterns of mesoscale cloud organization.
Alyson Douglas and Tristan L'Ecuyer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 15103–15114, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15103-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15103-2021, 2021
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When aerosols enter the atmosphere, they interact with the clouds above in what we term aerosol–cloud interactions and lead to a series of reactions which delay 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.
Hao Luo and Yong Han
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 15171–15184, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15171-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-15171-2021, 2021
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The various feedbacks of Atlantic tropical cyclones (TCs) to the Saharan air layer (SAL) are determined by the combined effects of dry air masses, the dust aerosols as ice nuclei, and dynamic, thermodynamic, and moisture conditions. The specific influence mechanisms of SAL on the three intensities of TCs (tropical depression, tropical storm, and hurricane) are different. The conclusions are beneficial to our recognition of the physical process and evolution of TCs in the Atlantic region.
Haoran Li, Ottmar Möhler, Tuukka Petäjä, and Dmitri Moisseev
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 14671–14686, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14671-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14671-2021, 2021
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In natural clouds, ice-nucleating particles are expected to be rare above –10 °C. In the current paper, 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 production of ice columns was attributed to secondary ice production, despite the rime-splintering process not being expected to take place in such clouds.
Qiang Li and Silke Groß
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 14573–14590, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14573-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14573-2021, 2021
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Aircraft emit exhaust gases and particles directly into the atmosphere, which may contribute to climate change. We present a significant reduction in the occurrence rate and particle linear depolarization ratio of cirrus clouds based on the analysis of measurements with the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) satellite during COVID-19 when air traffic was significantly reduced. The findings imply that these clouds formed with less influence from aviation.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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Short summary
From 3 years of observations from the CATS lidar on the International Space Station we document the daily cycle of the vertical distribution of clouds.
This is the first time this is documented over several continents and oceans using finely resolved measurements on a near-global scale from a single instrument.
We show that other instruments observing clouds from space, like CALIPSO, document extremes of the daily cycle over ocean and closer to the average over land.
From 3 years of observations from the CATS lidar on the International Space Station we document...
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