scholarly journals Final Technical Report for "Radiative Heating Associated with Tropical Convective Cloud Systems: Its Importance at Meso and Global Scales"

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Courtney Schumacher
Keyword(s):  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Radiative Heating ◽  
Cloud Systems ◽  
Technical Report

scholarly journals Characteristics of Cloud Systems over the Tibetan Plateau and East China during Boreal Summer

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (9) ◽  
pp. 3117-3137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinghua Chen ◽  
Xiaoqing Wu ◽  
Yan Yin ◽  
Qian Huang ◽  
Hui Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Diurnal Cycle ◽  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Radiative Heating ◽  
East China ◽  
Boreal Summer ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Cloud Systems ◽  
Convective Clouds ◽  
Cloud Resolving Model

Constrained by ERA-Interim, a cloud-resolving model is employed to characterize cloud systems over the Tibetan Plateau (TP) and east China. The authors focus on analyzing the role of different physical processes on cloud macro- and microscale properties of the cloud systems, especially convective cloud systems between east China and the TP. It is found that convective clouds over the TP are thinner than over east China. This difference is also reflected in the albedo at the top of the atmosphere, where smaller albedos are found for the clouds over the TP. Furthermore, the lifetimes of the deep cloud systems over the TP are shorter than over east China. For the entire simulated period, the latent heat released by phase transitions contributes the most to the total heating and moisture budget, followed by eddy transport over all regions. In addition, radiative heating also plays a nonnegligible role in the total heating effects over the TP. These results also suggest that the influence of ice phase processes is more important over the TP than east China, especially during deep convective periods. Affected by strong surface heat flux, the cloud-top height of convective clouds over the TP exhibits a diurnal cycle, leading to a diurnal cycle of rainfall.

An Observed Tropical Oceanic Radiative–Convective Cloud Feedback

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 2065-2078 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew D. Lebsock ◽  
Christian Kummerow ◽  
Graeme L. Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Stability ◽  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Precipitation Anomaly ◽  
Cloud Feedback ◽  
Radiative Heating ◽  
Large Spatial Scale ◽  
Cloud Properties ◽  
Tropical Oceans ◽  
The Mean ◽  
High Level

Abstract Anomalies of precipitation, cloud, thermodynamic, and radiation variables are analyzed on the large spatial scale defined by the tropical oceans. In particular, relationships between the mean tropical oceanic precipitation anomaly and radiative anomalies are examined. It is found that tropical mean precipitation is well correlated with cloud properties and radiative fields. In particular, the tropical mean precipitation anomaly is positively correlated with the top of the atmosphere reflected shortwave anomaly and negatively correlated with the emitted longwave anomaly. The tropical mean relationships are found to primarily result from a coherent oscillation of precipitation and the area of high-level cloudiness. The correlations manifest themselves radiatively as a modest decrease in net downwelling radiation at the top of the atmosphere, and a redistribution of energy from the surface to the atmosphere through reduced solar radiation to the surface and decreased longwave emission to space. Integrated over the tropical oceanic domain, the anomalous atmospheric column radiative heating is found to be about 10% of the magnitude of the anomalous latent heating. The temporal signature of the radiative heating is observed in the column mean temperature that indicates a coherent phase-lagged oscillation between atmospheric stability and convection. These relationships are identified as a radiative–convective cloud feedback that is observed on intraseasonal time scales in the tropical atmosphere.

scholarly journals Using SEVIRI radiances to retrieve cloud optical properties of convective cloud systems

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Müller ◽  
Jürgen Fischer ◽  
Anja Hünerbein ◽  
Hartwig Deneke ◽  
Andreas Macke
Keyword(s):  
Optical Properties ◽  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Cloud Systems

scholarly journals Impact of interannual variations in sources of insoluble aerosol species on orographic precipitation over California's central Sierra Nevada

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 6535-6548 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Creamean ◽  
A. P. Ault ◽  
A. B. White ◽  
P. J. Neiman ◽  
F. M. Ralph ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Long Range ◽  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Water Resource Management ◽  
Cloud Condensation Nuclei ◽  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Orographic Precipitation ◽  
Cloud Systems ◽  
Precipitation Processes ◽  
Aerosol Sources

Abstract. Aerosols that serve as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) and ice nuclei (IN) have the potential to profoundly influence precipitation processes. Furthermore, changes in orographic precipitation have broad implications for reservoir storage and flood risks. As part of the CalWater field campaign (2009–2011), the variability and associated impacts of different aerosol sources on precipitation were investigated in the California Sierra Nevada using an aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer for precipitation chemistry, S-band profiling radar for precipitation classification, remote sensing measurements of cloud properties, and surface meteorological measurements. The composition of insoluble residues in precipitation samples collected at a surface site contained mostly local biomass burning and long-range-transported dust and biological particles (2009), local sources of biomass burning and pollution (2010), and long-range transport (2011). Although differences in the sources of insoluble residues were observed from year to year, the most consistent source of dust and biological residues were associated with storms consisting of deep convective cloud systems with significant quantities of precipitation initiated in the ice phase. Further, biological residues were dominant (up to 40%) during storms with relatively warm cloud temperatures (up to −15 °C), supporting the important role bioparticles can play as ice nucleating particles. On the other hand, lower percentages of residues from local biomass burning and pollution were observed over the three winter seasons (on average 31 and 9%, respectively). When precipitation quantities were relatively low, these insoluble residues most likely served as CCN, forming smaller more numerous cloud droplets at the base of shallow cloud systems, and resulting in less efficient riming processes. Ultimately, the goal is to use such observations to improve the mechanistic linkages between aerosol sources and precipitation processes to produce more accurate predictive weather forecast models and improve water resource management.

scholarly journals Wavelet Analysis of Simulated Tropical Convective Cloud Systems. Part I: Basic Analysis

2001 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 850-867 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun-Ichi Yano ◽  
Mitchell W. Moncrieff ◽  
Xiaoqing Wu ◽  
Michio Yamada
Keyword(s):  
Wavelet Analysis ◽  
Convective Cloud ◽  
Cloud Systems
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