Exploratory cloud-resolving simulations of boundary-layer Arctic stratus clouds Part I: Warm-season clouds

.Two-dimensional simulations of arctic stratus clouds ASC were conducted using a sophisti-cated cloud-resolving model with explicit microphysics and a two-stream radiative transfer model. .The effects of varying cloud condensation nuclei CCN concentrations upon the subsequent cloud and its microphys...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Peter Q. Olsson A, Jerry Y. Harrington A, Graham Feingold C, William R. Cotton B, Sonia M. Kreidenweis B
Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
Format: Text
Language:English
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Online Access:http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.512.8332
http://www.meteo.psu.edu/~jyh10/pubs/olsson-harring-liqasc.pdf
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Summary:.Two-dimensional simulations of arctic stratus clouds ASC were conducted using a sophisti-cated cloud-resolving model with explicit microphysics and a two-stream radiative transfer model. .The effects of varying cloud condensation nuclei CCN concentrations upon the subsequent cloud and its microphysical, radiative and dynamical structure were studied. In this study CCN .concentrations were varied within the ranges found in warm-season arctic boundary layers ABLs to produce non-drizzling and weakly drizzling stratus decks. Experiments that included all model physics, no-drizzle, and no shortwave radiation were conducted to elucidate the effects of microphysics and radiation on the simulated stratus. Both simulations that did and that did not include the effects of drizzle showed that the higher CCN concentrations produced a cloud with larger reflectivity and absorptivity, but also produced eddies that were weaker than with lower CCN concentrations. Simulations that included the effects of drizzle showed a similar response to changes in CCN concentrations. Simulations with no drizzle produced more vigorous eddies than their drizzling counterparts because cooling due to evaporation below cloud tends to stabilize the ABL. The simulations without the effects of short-wave radiation produced very vigorous eddies