Evidence of liquid dependent ice nucleation in high-latitude stratiform clouds from surface remote sensors
Ground-based lidar, radar and microwave radiometer observations at Eureka, Canada, Barrow, Alaska and over the western Arctic Ocean measure physical characteristics and morphology of stratiform clouds. Despite transition of a cold atmosphere (−15 C)through ice supersaturated conditions, ice is not o...
Published in: | Geophysical Research Letters |
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Other Authors: | , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
American Geophysical Union
2011
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://nldr.library.ucar.edu/repository/collections/OSGC-000-000-003-512 https://doi.org/10.1029/2010GL046016 |
Summary: | Ground-based lidar, radar and microwave radiometer observations at Eureka, Canada, Barrow, Alaska and over the western Arctic Ocean measure physical characteristics and morphology of stratiform clouds. Despite transition of a cold atmosphere (−15 C)through ice supersaturated conditions, ice is not observed until soon after a liquid layer. Several cases illustrating this phenomenon are presented in addition to long-term observations from three measurement sites characterizing cloud phase frequency. This analysis demonstrates that clouds composed entirely of ice occur less frequently than liquid-topped mixed-phase clouds at temperatures warmer than −25 to −30 C. These results indicate ice formation generally occurs in conjunction with liquid at these temperatures, and suggest the importance of liquid-dependent ice nucleation mechanisms. |
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