An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing

We use the 2B-GEOPROF-LIDAR R04 (2BGL4) and R05 (2BGL5) products and the 2B-CLDCLASS-LIDAR R04 (2BCL4) product, all generated by combining CloudSat radar and CALIPSO lidar satellite measurements with auxiliary data, to examine the vertical distribution of cloud occurrence around the Ross Ice Shelf (...

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Published in:Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Main Authors: Jolly, Ben, Kuma, Peter, McDonald, Adrian, Parsons, Simon
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018
https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/18/9723/2018/
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spelling ftcopernicus:oai:publications.copernicus.org:acp59694 2023-05-15T16:41:53+02:00 An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing Jolly, Ben Kuma, Peter McDonald, Adrian Parsons, Simon 2019-01-22 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018 https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/18/9723/2018/ eng eng doi:10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018 https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/18/9723/2018/ eISSN: 1680-7324 Text 2019 ftcopernicus https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018 2019-12-24T09:50:05Z We use the 2B-GEOPROF-LIDAR R04 (2BGL4) and R05 (2BGL5) products and the 2B-CLDCLASS-LIDAR R04 (2BCL4) product, all generated by combining CloudSat radar and CALIPSO lidar satellite measurements with auxiliary data, to examine the vertical distribution of cloud occurrence around the Ross Ice Shelf (RIS) and Ross Sea region. We find that the 2BGL4 product, used in previous studies in this region, displays a discontinuity at 8.2 km which is not observable in the other products. This artefact appears to correspond to a change in the horizontal and vertical resolution of the CALIPSO dataset used above this level. We then use the 2BCL4 product to examine the vertical distribution of cloud occurrence, phase, and type over the RIS and Ross Sea. In particular we examine how synoptic conditions in the region, derived using a previously developed synoptic classification, impact the cloud environment and the contrasting response in the two regions. We observe large differences between the cloud occurrence as a function of altitude for synoptic regimes relative to those for seasonal variations. A stronger variation in the occurrence of clear skies and multi-layer cloud and in all cloud type occurrences over both the Ross Sea and RIS is associated more with synoptic type than seasonal composites. In addition, anomalies from the mean joint histogram of cloud top height against thickness display significant differences over the Ross Sea and RIS sectors as a function of synoptic regime, but are near identical over these two regions when a seasonal analysis is completed. However, the frequency of particular phases of cloud, notably mixed phase and water, is much more strongly modulated by seasonal than synoptic regime compositing, which suggests that temperature is still the most important control on cloud phase in the region. Text Ice Shelf Ross Ice Shelf Ross Sea Copernicus Publications: E-Journals Ross Ice Shelf Ross Sea Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 18 13 9723 9739
institution Open Polar
collection Copernicus Publications: E-Journals
op_collection_id ftcopernicus
language English
description We use the 2B-GEOPROF-LIDAR R04 (2BGL4) and R05 (2BGL5) products and the 2B-CLDCLASS-LIDAR R04 (2BCL4) product, all generated by combining CloudSat radar and CALIPSO lidar satellite measurements with auxiliary data, to examine the vertical distribution of cloud occurrence around the Ross Ice Shelf (RIS) and Ross Sea region. We find that the 2BGL4 product, used in previous studies in this region, displays a discontinuity at 8.2 km which is not observable in the other products. This artefact appears to correspond to a change in the horizontal and vertical resolution of the CALIPSO dataset used above this level. We then use the 2BCL4 product to examine the vertical distribution of cloud occurrence, phase, and type over the RIS and Ross Sea. In particular we examine how synoptic conditions in the region, derived using a previously developed synoptic classification, impact the cloud environment and the contrasting response in the two regions. We observe large differences between the cloud occurrence as a function of altitude for synoptic regimes relative to those for seasonal variations. A stronger variation in the occurrence of clear skies and multi-layer cloud and in all cloud type occurrences over both the Ross Sea and RIS is associated more with synoptic type than seasonal composites. In addition, anomalies from the mean joint histogram of cloud top height against thickness display significant differences over the Ross Sea and RIS sectors as a function of synoptic regime, but are near identical over these two regions when a seasonal analysis is completed. However, the frequency of particular phases of cloud, notably mixed phase and water, is much more strongly modulated by seasonal than synoptic regime compositing, which suggests that temperature is still the most important control on cloud phase in the region.
format Text
author Jolly, Ben
Kuma, Peter
McDonald, Adrian
Parsons, Simon
spellingShingle Jolly, Ben
Kuma, Peter
McDonald, Adrian
Parsons, Simon
An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
author_facet Jolly, Ben
Kuma, Peter
McDonald, Adrian
Parsons, Simon
author_sort Jolly, Ben
title An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
title_short An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
title_full An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
title_fullStr An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
title_full_unstemmed An analysis of the cloud environment over the Ross Sea and Ross Ice Shelf using CloudSat/CALIPSO satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
title_sort analysis of the cloud environment over the ross sea and ross ice shelf using cloudsat/calipso satellite observations: the importance of synoptic forcing
publishDate 2019
url https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018
https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/18/9723/2018/
geographic Ross Ice Shelf
Ross Sea
geographic_facet Ross Ice Shelf
Ross Sea
genre Ice Shelf
Ross Ice Shelf
Ross Sea
genre_facet Ice Shelf
Ross Ice Shelf
Ross Sea
op_source eISSN: 1680-7324
op_relation doi:10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018
https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/18/9723/2018/
op_doi https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-9723-2018
container_title Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
container_volume 18
container_issue 13
container_start_page 9723
op_container_end_page 9739
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