Isotopic fractionation during ice growth by riming and its effect on the <i>d</i>-excess of precipitation

Aggarwal, Pradeep K.; Schumacher, Courtney; Longstaffe, Frederick J.; Funk, Aaron; Shupe, Matthew D.

doi:10.5194/acp-26-13661-2026

Articles | Volume 26, issue 19

https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-13661-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-13661-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 26, issue 19

Research article

|

30 Sep 2026

Research article |

| 30 Sep 2026

Isotopic fractionation during ice growth by riming and its effect on the d-excess of precipitation

Pradeep K. Aggarwal, Courtney Schumacher, Frederick J. Longstaffe, Aaron Funk, and Matthew D. Shupe

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-13661-2026-supplement

Data sets

Measurements of micro rain radar at AWIPEV, Ny-Ålesund (2017-2021) K. Ebell et al. https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.958967

Homogenized radiosonde record at station Ny-Ålesund, Spitsbergen, 2015-2016 M. Maturilli and M. Kayser https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.875196

Homogenized radiosonde record at station Ny-Ålesund, Spitsbergen, 2017-2022 M. Maturilli and E. Dünschede https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.961203

From atmospheric water isotopes measurement to firn core interpretation in Adelie Land: A case study for isotope-enabled atmospheric models in Antarctica C. Leroy-Dos Santos https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7708489

A 4.5 year-long record of Svalbard water vapor isotopic composition documents winter air mass origin V1 C. Leroy-Dos Santos https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3689566

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Short summary

We show that in mixed-phase clouds, ice forming by riming, that is, freezing of supercooled liquid directly on ice particles, differs in its isotope composition than the liquid, contrary to the existing view in the literature. This isotopic change is the same for riming in tropical to polar precipitation. Our results provide a robust tool for cloud processes studies, for better understanding past climates from ice cores data, and for improving micro-physics schemes in climate models.