Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
ACP
Articles | Volume 23, issue 24
Articles | Volume 23, issue 24
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15413-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Special issue:
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15413-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Articles | Volume 23, issue 24
Opinion
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18 Dec 2023
Opinion | Highlight paper |  | 18 Dec 2023

Opinion: Tropical cirrus – from micro-scale processes to climate-scale impacts

Blaž Gasparini, Sylvia C. Sullivan, Adam B. Sokol, Bernd Kärcher, Eric Jensen, and Dennis L. Hartmann

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This article offers a wide ranging review of current understanding of the role various tropical cirrus cloud types play in the redistribution of water within the atmosphere and how they affect the changing Earth's energy balance by reflecting sunlight and preventing the escape of thermal energy to outer space. Improved understanding of these dynamics has been identified as critical for predicting whether such clouds may amplify or slow future global climate change. A clear exposition is provided of the various methods used to study tropical cirrus cloud characteristics and processes, including remote sensing, in situ measurements, modeling and laboratory work. Key questions include identifying how small-scale microphysical processes affect larger cloud structure, and how cirrus altitude and extent responds to changing radiation and thermodynamic profiles. A call is made not only for improved representations of cloud processes at finer scales, but also for a more holistic approach using a hierarchy of model detail. Such efforts would enable new knowledge obtained from studying even the smallest scales to be more readily placed within a broader context applicable to climate studies.
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Tropical cirrus clouds are essential for climate, but our understanding of these clouds is limited due to their dependence on a wide range of small- and large-scale climate processes. In this opinion paper, we review recent advances in the study of tropical cirrus clouds, point out remaining open questions, and suggest ways to resolve them.
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