Articles | Volume 25, issue 23
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-18031-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Special issue:
Stratospheric hydration and ice microphysics of a convective overshoot observed during the TPEx campaign over Sweden
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- Final revised paper (published on 09 Dec 2025)
- Preprint (discussion started on 26 Jun 2025)
Interactive discussion
Status: closed
Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor
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RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2847', Anonymous Referee #1, 21 Jul 2025
- AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Patrick Konjari, 10 Oct 2025
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RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2847', Anonymous Referee #2, 12 Aug 2025
- AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Patrick Konjari, 10 Oct 2025
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RC3: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2847', Anonymous Referee #3, 20 Aug 2025
- AC3: 'Reply on RC3', Patrick Konjari, 10 Oct 2025
Peer review completion
AR – Author's response | RR – Referee report | ED – Editor decision | EF – Editorial file upload
AR by Patrick Konjari on behalf of the Authors (10 Oct 2025)
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ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (31 Oct 2025) by Aurélien Podglajen
AR by Patrick Konjari on behalf of the Authors (19 Nov 2025)
Author's response
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ED: Publish as is (22 Nov 2025) by Aurélien Podglajen
AR by Patrick Konjari on behalf of the Authors (28 Nov 2025)
The manuscript presents unique in situ observations of a convective overshooting event into the lower stratosphere during a mid-latitude cold-air outbreak (TPEx, June 2024, Sweden). The combined microphysical cloud spectrometer and trace gas measurements document the transport of ice particles and tropospheric water vapor up to ~1.5 km above a low tropopause (~9 km), together with pronounced ozone structure and signatures of gravity-wave-driven mixing. These data fill an important gap in the current literature, which has emphasized (sub)tropical overshooting, and they provide valuable constraints on short-lived stratospheric hydration following overshoot events. I find the study interesting, the measurements novel, and—after addressing the points below—suitable for publication. Brief remarks follow.
37: defined by potential temperatures (Θ) greater than 380 K, a threshold chosen because the 380 K is the lowest isentropic surface lying entirely above the tropopause globally, throughout all seasons, thereby marking the lower boundary of the permanently stratospheric air mass.
110: Typo; “The…”
112: “… arising from …”
114: Either explain what the modification was, and with respect to what former setup, or simply state that there is an offset.
175: “…masses for the season…”
199: Before what?
230: The explanation suggesting that the constant water vapor mixing ratio and RH ≈ 120% result from sublimation of small ice particles may need reconsideration. At such levels of supersaturation, even small ice particles are generally expected to grow rather than sublimate, despite the influence of the Kelvin effect. It might be helpful to clarify under which specific conditions sublimation would still be expected at RH > 100%, or to explore alternative explanations for the observed features. Rather than sublimation, the apparent loss of small ice particles under RH≈ 120% could be attributed to preferential growth of larger particles due to a Wegener–Bergeron–Findeisen like process, or to instrumental limitations in detecting the smallest size classes. It may be helpful for the authors to clarify whether such factors have been considered as alternative explanations. While the classical Wegener–Bergeron–Findeisen process involves vapor transfer from liquid to ice, a similar size-selective growth mechanism may occur among ice particles of different sizes in a supersaturated environment. In such conditions, larger crystals grow faster due to reduced surface curvature effects, while smaller particles may grow more slowly or become depleted through diffusional competition. Clarifying this distinction might help improve the interpretation of the observed changes in the ice PSD.
236: The explanation invoking diabatic cooling due to ice sublimation is physically sound, but it would be helpful if the authors could quantify the observed temperature decrease in the overshooting filament. Given the latent heat involved, even modest sublimation can cause cooling on the order of 1–3 K depending on the local ice water content. Including this information would help support the proposed interpretation.
247-251: The observed correlation between trace gas fluctuations and potential temperature is interesting, especially in a context where wave breaking is invoked. Given that wave-induced irreversible mixing tends to reduce such correlations, it would be helpful if the authors could clarify here whether the observed structure reflects an early stage of breaking with incomplete mixing, or a coherent transport process preceding the mixing. This also in view of the discussion that follows which strengthen the interpretation of mixing.
352: The microphysical simulations suggest that ice crystals sublimate within 3 minutes after full entrainment in the LS. However, given the observational evidence of ice particles persisting under subsaturated conditions, it would be helpful if the authors could clarify whether such short sublimation times are consistent with the size range of the observed particles and the inferred degree of subsaturation. Additionally, are the authors confident that the observed particles must have been injected so shortly before detection? Further discussion on the timing and plausibility of such recent injection would be of interest.