Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations
Large eddy simulations (LES) that explicitly resolve boundary layer (BL) turbulence and clouds are used to explore the sensitivity of idealized Arctic BL clouds to climate perturbations. The LES focus on conditions resembling springtime, when surface heat fluxes over sea ice are weak, and the cloud...
Published in: | Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society |
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 |
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ftcaltechauth:oai:authors.library.caltech.edu:5dasa-44z38 2024-09-15T18:02:13+00:00 Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations Zhang, Xiyue Schneider, Tapio Kaul, Colleen M. 2020-10 https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 unknown Wiley https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 oai:authors.library.caltech.edu:5dasa-44z38 eprintid:103819 resolverid:CaltechAUTHORS:20200610-102248992 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Other Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, 146(732), 3285-3305, (2020-10) large eddy simulation Arctic stratocumulus mixedâ€layer model mixedâ€phase clouds info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2020 ftcaltechauth https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 2024-08-06T15:35:00Z Large eddy simulations (LES) that explicitly resolve boundary layer (BL) turbulence and clouds are used to explore the sensitivity of idealized Arctic BL clouds to climate perturbations. The LES focus on conditions resembling springtime, when surface heat fluxes over sea ice are weak, and the cloud radiative effect is dominated by the longwave effect. In the LES, the condensed water path increases with BL temperature and freeâ€tropospheric relative humidity, but it decreases with inversion strength. The dependencies of cloud properties on environmental variables exhibited by the LES can largely be reproduced by a mixedâ€layer model. Mixedâ€layer model analysis shows that the liquid water path increases with warming because the liquid water gradient increase under warming overcompensates for geometric cloud thinning. This response contrasts with the response of subtropical stratocumulus to warming, whose liquid water path decreases as the clouds thin geometrically under warming. The results suggest that methods used to explain the response of lowerâ€latitude BL clouds to climate change can also elucidate changes in idealized Arctic BL clouds, although subtropical and Arctic clouds occupy different thermodynamic regimes. © 2020 Royal Meteorological Society. Issue Online: 09 November 2020; Version of Record online: 20 July 2020; Accepted manuscript online: 09 June 2020; Manuscript accepted: 04 June 2020; Manuscript revised: 15 May 2020; Manuscript received: 06 August 2019. Funding: National Science Foundation. Grant Number: CCFâ€1048575. Supplemental Material - qj3846-sup-0001-supinfo.pdf Article in Journal/Newspaper Climate change Sea ice Caltech Authors (California Institute of Technology) Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society 146 732 3285 3305 |
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Open Polar |
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Caltech Authors (California Institute of Technology) |
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language |
unknown |
topic |
large eddy simulation Arctic stratocumulus mixedâ€layer model mixedâ€phase clouds |
spellingShingle |
large eddy simulation Arctic stratocumulus mixedâ€layer model mixedâ€phase clouds Zhang, Xiyue Schneider, Tapio Kaul, Colleen M. Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
topic_facet |
large eddy simulation Arctic stratocumulus mixedâ€layer model mixedâ€phase clouds |
description |
Large eddy simulations (LES) that explicitly resolve boundary layer (BL) turbulence and clouds are used to explore the sensitivity of idealized Arctic BL clouds to climate perturbations. The LES focus on conditions resembling springtime, when surface heat fluxes over sea ice are weak, and the cloud radiative effect is dominated by the longwave effect. In the LES, the condensed water path increases with BL temperature and freeâ€tropospheric relative humidity, but it decreases with inversion strength. The dependencies of cloud properties on environmental variables exhibited by the LES can largely be reproduced by a mixedâ€layer model. Mixedâ€layer model analysis shows that the liquid water path increases with warming because the liquid water gradient increase under warming overcompensates for geometric cloud thinning. This response contrasts with the response of subtropical stratocumulus to warming, whose liquid water path decreases as the clouds thin geometrically under warming. The results suggest that methods used to explain the response of lowerâ€latitude BL clouds to climate change can also elucidate changes in idealized Arctic BL clouds, although subtropical and Arctic clouds occupy different thermodynamic regimes. © 2020 Royal Meteorological Society. Issue Online: 09 November 2020; Version of Record online: 20 July 2020; Accepted manuscript online: 09 June 2020; Manuscript accepted: 04 June 2020; Manuscript revised: 15 May 2020; Manuscript received: 06 August 2019. Funding: National Science Foundation. Grant Number: CCFâ€1048575. Supplemental Material - qj3846-sup-0001-supinfo.pdf |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Zhang, Xiyue Schneider, Tapio Kaul, Colleen M. |
author_facet |
Zhang, Xiyue Schneider, Tapio Kaul, Colleen M. |
author_sort |
Zhang, Xiyue |
title |
Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
title_short |
Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
title_full |
Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
title_fullStr |
Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
title_sort |
sensitivity of idealized mixed-phase stratocumulus to climate perturbations |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 |
genre |
Climate change Sea ice |
genre_facet |
Climate change Sea ice |
op_source |
Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, 146(732), 3285-3305, (2020-10) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 oai:authors.library.caltech.edu:5dasa-44z38 eprintid:103819 resolverid:CaltechAUTHORS:20200610-102248992 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Other |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3846 |
container_title |
Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society |
container_volume |
146 |
container_issue |
732 |
container_start_page |
3285 |
op_container_end_page |
3305 |
_version_ |
1810439696284647424 |