scholarly journals Saharan dust, convective lofting, aerosol enhancement zones, and potential impacts on ice nucleation in the tropical upper troposphere

2017 ◽  
Vol 122 (16) ◽  
pp. 8833-8851 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. H. Twohy ◽  
B. E. Anderson ◽  
R. A. Ferrare ◽  
K. E. Sauter ◽  
T. S. L'Ecuyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Nucleation ◽  
Saharan Dust ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Tropical Upper Troposphere

scholarly journals Seasonal variability of Saharan desert dust and ice nucleating particles over Europe

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (23) ◽  
pp. 32071-32092 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. B. Hande ◽  
C. Engler ◽  
C. Hoose ◽  
I. Tegen
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variability ◽  
Mesoscale Model ◽  
Ice Nucleation ◽  
Saharan Dust ◽  
Dust Particles ◽  
Limited Area ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Immersion Freezing ◽  
Best Fit ◽  
Normal Background

Abstract. Dust aerosols are thought to be the main contributor to atmospheric ice nucleation. While there are case studies supporting this, a climatological sense of the importance of dust to atmospheric ice nucleating particle (INP) concentrations, and it's seasonal variability over Europe is lacking. Here, we use a mesoscale model to estimate Saharan dust concentrations over Europe in winter and summer of 2007–2008. There are large differences in median dust concentrations between seasons, with the highest concentrations and highest variability in the lowest 4 km. Laboratory based ice nucleation parameterisations are applied to these dust number concentrations to calculate the potential INP resulting from immersion freezing and deposition nucleation on these dust particles. The potential INP concentrations generally increase with height due to decreasing temperatures in the lower and mid-troposphere and exhibit a maximum in the upper troposphere where INP concentrations decrease again with altitude due to decreasing dust concentrations. The potential INP profiles exhibit similarly large differences between seasons, with the highest concentrations in winter (median potential immersion INP concentrations up to 103 m−3, median potential deposition INP concentrations at 120% relative humidity with respect to ice up to 105 m−3) occurring closer to the ground for both nucleation modes. Using these results, a best-fit function is provided to estimate the potential INPs for use in limited-area models, which is representative of the normal background INP concentrations over Europe. A statistical evaluation of the results against field and laboratory measurements indicates that the INP concentrations are in close agreement with observations.

scholarly journals Ice nucleating particles over the Eastern Mediterranean measured by unmanned aircraft systems

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
pp. 4817-4835 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jann Schrod ◽  
Daniel Weber ◽  
Jaqueline Drücke ◽  
Christos Keleshis ◽  
Michael Pikridas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transport Model ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Ice Nucleation ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ◽  
Saharan Dust ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Aircraft Systems

Abstract. During an intensive field campaign on aerosol, clouds, and ice nucleation in the Eastern Mediterranean in April 2016, we measured the abundance of ice nucleating particles (INPs) in the lower troposphere from unmanned aircraft systems (UASs). Aerosol samples were collected by miniaturized electrostatic precipitators onboard the UASs at altitudes up to 2.5 km. The number of INPs in these samples, which are active in the deposition and condensation modes at temperatures from −20 to −30 °C, were analyzed immediately after collection on site using the ice nucleus counter FRIDGE (FRankfurt Ice nucleation Deposition freezinG Experiment). During the 1-month campaign, we encountered a series of Saharan dust plumes that traveled at several kilometers' altitude. Here we present INP data from 42 individual flights, together with aerosol number concentrations, observations of lidar backscattering, dust concentrations derived by the dust transport model DREAM (Dust Regional Atmospheric Model), and results from scanning electron microscopy. The effect of the dust plumes is reflected by the coincidence of INPs with the particulate matter (PM), the lidar signal, and the predicted dust mass of the model. This suggests that mineral dust or a constituent related to dust was a major contributor to the ice nucleating properties of the aerosol. Peak concentrations of above 100 INPs std L−1 were measured at −30 °C. The INP concentration in elevated plumes was on average a factor of 10 higher than at ground level. Since desert dust is transported for long distances over wide areas of the globe predominantly at several kilometers' altitude, we conclude that INP measurements at ground level may be of limited significance for the situation at the level of cloud formation.

Reexamining the warming in the tropical upper troposphere: Models versus radiosonde observations

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (22) ◽  
pp. n/a-n/a ◽  
Author(s):  
Dian J. Seidel ◽  
Melissa Free ◽  
James S. Wang
Keyword(s):  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Tropical Upper Troposphere

scholarly journals Modeling the transport of very short-lived substances into the tropical upper troposphere and lower stratosphere

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 18511-18543 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Aschmann ◽  
B. M. Sinnhuber ◽  
E. L. Atlas ◽  
S. M. Schauffler
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Transport Model ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Chemical Transport Model ◽  
Heating Rates ◽  
Model Calculations ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Mass Fluxes ◽  
Tropical Upper Troposphere

Abstract. The transport of very short-lived substances into the tropical upper troposphere and lower stratosphere is investigated by a three-dimensional chemical transport model using archived convective updraft mass fluxes (or detrainment rates) from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecast's ERA-Interim reanalysis. Large-scale vertical velocities are calculated from diabatic heating rates. With this approach we explicitly model the large scale subsidence in the tropical troposphere with convection taking place in fast and isolated updraft events. The model calculations agree generally well with observations of bromoform and methyl iodide from aircraft campaigns and with ozone and water vapor from sonde and satellite observations. Using a simplified treatment of dehydration and bromine product gas washout we give a range of 1.6 to 3 ppt for the contribution of bromoform to stratospheric bromine, assuming a uniform source in the boundary layer of 1 ppt. We show that the most effective region for VSLS transport into the stratosphere is the West Pacific, accounting for about 55% of the bromine from bromoform transported into the stratosphere under the supposition of a uniformly distributed source.

scholarly journals A statistical analysis of the influence of deep convection on water vapor variability in the tropical upper troposphere

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (15) ◽  
pp. 5847-5864 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Wright ◽  
R. Fu ◽  
A. J. Heymsfield
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Deep Convection ◽  
Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Ambient Relative Humidity ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Ice Water Content ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
Ice Water ◽  
Tropical Upper Troposphere

Abstract. The factors that control the influence of deep convective detrainment on water vapor in the tropical upper troposphere are examined using observations from multiple satellites in conjunction with a trajectory model. Deep convection is confirmed to act primarily as a moisture source to the upper troposphere, modulated by the ambient relative humidity (RH). Convective detrainment provides strong moistening at low RH and offsets drying due to subsidence across a wide range of RH. Strong day-to-day moistening and drying takes place most frequently in relatively dry transition zones, where between 0.01% and 0.1% of Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission Precipitation Radar observations indicate active convection. Many of these strong moistening events in the tropics can be directly attributed to detrainment from recent tropical convection, while others in the subtropics appear to be related to stratosphere-troposphere exchange. The temporal and spatial limits of the convective source are estimated to be about 36–48 h and 600–1500 km, respectively, consistent with the lifetimes of detrainment cirrus clouds. Larger amounts of detrained ice are associated with enhanced upper tropospheric moistening in both absolute and relative terms. In particular, an increase in ice water content of approximately 400% corresponds to a 10–90% increase in the likelihood of moistening and a 30–50% increase in the magnitude of moistening.

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