Articles | Volume 20, issue 21
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12955-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12955-2020
Research article
 | 
05 Nov 2020
Research article |  | 05 Nov 2020

Models transport Saharan dust too low in the atmosphere: a comparison of the MetUM and CAMS forecasts with observations

Debbie O'Sullivan, Franco Marenco, Claire L. Ryder, Yaswant Pradhan, Zak Kipling, Ben Johnson, Angela Benedetti, Melissa Brooks, Matthew McGill, John Yorks, and Patrick Selmer

Related authors

Vertical and horizontal distribution of submicron aerosol chemical composition and physical characteristics across northern India during pre-monsoon and monsoon seasons
James Brooks, James D. Allan, Paul I. Williams, Dantong Liu, Cathryn Fox, Jim Haywood, Justin M. Langridge, Ellie J. Highwood, Sobhan K. Kompalli, Debbie O'Sullivan, Suresh S. Babu, Sreedharan K. Satheesh, Andrew G. Turner, and Hugh Coe
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 5615–5634, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-5615-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-5615-2019, 2019
Short summary
Unexpected vertical structure of the Saharan Air Layer and giant dust particles during AER-D
Franco Marenco, Claire Ryder, Victor Estellés, Debbie O'Sullivan, Jennifer Brooke, Luke Orgill, Gary Lloyd, and Martin Gallagher
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 17655–17668, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17655-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-17655-2018, 2018
Short summary
Advances in understanding mineral dust and boundary layer processes over the Sahara from Fennec aircraft observations
C. L. Ryder, J. B. McQuaid, C. Flamant, P. D. Rosenberg, R. Washington, H. E. Brindley, E. J. Highwood, J. H. Marsham, D. J. Parker, M. C. Todd, J. R. Banks, J. K. Brooke, S. Engelstaedter, V. Estelles, P. Formenti, L. Garcia-Carreras, C. Kocha, F. Marenco, H. Sodemann, C. J. T. Allen, A. Bourdon, M. Bart, C. Cavazos-Guerra, S. Chevaillier, J. Crosier, E. Darbyshire, A. R. Dean, J. R. Dorsey, J. Kent, D. O'Sullivan, K. Schepanski, K. Szpek, J. Trembath, and A. Woolley
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 8479–8520, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-8479-2015,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-8479-2015, 2015
Short summary
Increasing concentrations of dichloromethane, CH2Cl2, inferred from CARIBIC air samples collected 1998–2012
Emma C. Leedham Elvidge, D. E. Oram, J. C. Laube, A. K. Baker, S. A. Montzka, S. Humphrey, D. A. O'Sullivan, and C. A. M. Brenninkmeijer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 1939–1958, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-1939-2015,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-1939-2015, 2015

Related subject area

Subject: Aerosols | Research Activity: Atmospheric Modelling and Data Analysis | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Physics (physical properties and processes)
Microphysical modelling of aerosol scavenging by different types of clouds: description and validation of the approach
Pascal Lemaitre, Arnaud Quérel, Alexis Dépée, Alice Guerra Devigne, Marie Monier, Thibault Hiron, Chloé Soto Minguez, Daniel Hardy, and Andrea Flossmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9713–9732, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9713-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9713-2024, 2024
Short summary
Insights into the sources of ultrafine particle numbers at six European urban sites obtained by investigating COVID-19 lockdowns
Alex Rowell, James Brean, David C. S. Beddows, Tuukka Petäjä, Máté Vörösmarty, Imre Salma, Jarkko V. Niemi, Hanna E. Manninen, Dominik van Pinxteren, Thomas Tuch, Kay Weinhold, Zongbo Shi, and Roy M. Harrison
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9515–9531, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9515-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9515-2024, 2024
Short summary
In-plume and out-of-plume analysis of aerosol–cloud interactions derived from the 2014–2015 Holuhraun volcanic eruption
Amy H. Peace, Ying Chen, George Jordan, Daniel G. Partridge, Florent Malavelle, Eliza Duncan, and Jim M. Haywood
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 9533–9553, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9533-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-9533-2024, 2024
Short summary
Impacts of atmospheric circulation patterns and cloud inhibition on aerosol radiative effect and boundary layer structure during winter air pollution in Sichuan Basin, China
Hua Lu, Min Xie, Bingliang Zhuang, Danyang Ma, Bojun Liu, Yangzhihao Zhan, Tijian Wang, Shu Li, Mengmeng Li, and Kuanguang Zhu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8963–8982, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8963-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8963-2024, 2024
Short summary
Investigating the sign of stratocumulus adjustments to aerosols in the ICON global storm-resolving model
Emilie Fons, Ann Kristin Naumann, David Neubauer, Theresa Lang, and Ulrike Lohmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 8653–8675, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8653-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-8653-2024, 2024
Short summary

Cited articles

Adebiyi, A. A. and Kok, J. F.: Climate models miss most of the coarse dust in the atmosphere, Sci. Adv., 6, eaaz9507, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaz9507, 2020. 
Ansmann, A., Petzold, A., Kandler, K., Tegen, I., Wendisch, M., Müller, D., Weinzierl, B., Müller, T., and Heintzenberg, J.: Saharan Mineral Dust Experiments SAMUM-1 and SAMUM-2: what have we learned?, Tellus B, 63, 403–429, 2011. 
Ansmann, A., Rittmeister, F., Engelmann, R., Basart, S., Jorba, O., Spyrou, C., Remy, S., Skupin, A., Baars, H., Seifert, P., Senf, F., and Kanitz, T.: Profiling of Saharan dust from the Caribbean to western Africa – Part 2: Shipborne lidar measurements versus forecasts, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 14987–15006, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-14987-2017, 2017. 
Balkanski, Y., Schulz, M., Claquin, T., and Guibert, S.: Reevaluation of Mineral aerosol radiative forcings suggests a better agreement with satellite and AERONET data, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 7, 81–95, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-7-81-2007, 2007. 
Benedetti, A., Morcrette, J.-J., Boucher, O., Dethof, A., Engelen, R. J., Fisher, M., Flentje, H., Huneeus, N., Jones, L., Kaiser, J. W., Kinne, S., Mangold, A., Razinger, M., Simmons, A. J., and Suttie, M.: Aerosol analysis and forecast in the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Integrated Forecast System: 2. Data assimilation, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 114, D13, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JD011115, 2009. 
Download
Short summary
Mineral dust is an important component of the climate system, and we assess how well it is predicted by two operational models. We flew an aircraft in the dust layers in the eastern Atlantic, and we also make use of satellites. We show that models predict the dust layer too low and that it predicts the particles to be too small. We believe that these discrepancies may be overcome if models can be constrained with operational observations of dust vertical and size-resolved distribution.
Altmetrics
Final-revised paper
Preprint