Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska
Clear-sky periods across the high latitudes have profound impacts on the surface energy budget and lower atmospheric stratification; however an understanding of the atmospheric processes leading to low-level cloud dissipation and formation events is limited. A method to identify clear periods at Utq...
Published in: | Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
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Copernicus Publications
2021
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ftnonlinearchiv:oai:noa.gwlb.de:cop_mods_00055964 2023-05-15T15:39:41+02:00 Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska Sedlar, Joseph Igel, Adele Telg, Hagen 2021-03 electronic https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00055964 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00055615/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/4149/2021/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf eng eng Copernicus Publications Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics -- http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/volumes_and_issues.html -- http://www.bibliothek.uni-regensburg.de/ezeit/?2069847 -- 1680-7324 https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00055964 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00055615/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/4149/2021/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ uneingeschränkt info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess CC-BY article Verlagsveröffentlichung article Text doc-type:article 2021 ftnonlinearchiv https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 2022-02-08T22:34:17Z Clear-sky periods across the high latitudes have profound impacts on the surface energy budget and lower atmospheric stratification; however an understanding of the atmospheric processes leading to low-level cloud dissipation and formation events is limited. A method to identify clear periods at Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, during a 5-year period (2014–2018) is developed. A suite of remote sensing and in situ measurements from the high-latitude observatory are analyzed; we focus on comparing and contrasting atmospheric properties during low-level (below 2 km) cloud dissipation and formation events to understand the processes controlling clear-sky periods. Vertical profiles of lidar backscatter suggest that aerosol presence across the lower atmosphere is relatively invariant during the periods bookending clear conditions, which suggests that a sparsity of aerosol is not frequently a cause for cloud dissipation on the North Slope of Alaska. Further, meteorological analysis indicates two active processes ongoing that appear to support the formation of low clouds after a clear-sky period: namely, horizontal advection, which was dominant in winter and early spring, and quiescent air mass modification, which was dominant in the summer. During summer, the dominant mode of cloud formation is a low cloud or fog layer developing near the surface. This low cloud formation is driven largely by air mass modification under relatively quiescent synoptic conditions. Near-surface aerosol particles concentrations changed by a factor of 2 around summer formation events. Thermodynamic adjustment and increased aerosol presence under quiescent atmospheric conditions are hypothesized as important mechanisms for fog formation. Article in Journal/Newspaper Barrow north slope Alaska Niedersächsisches Online-Archiv NOA Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 21 5 4149 4167 |
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Niedersächsisches Online-Archiv NOA |
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ftnonlinearchiv |
language |
English |
topic |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung |
spellingShingle |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung Sedlar, Joseph Igel, Adele Telg, Hagen Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
topic_facet |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung |
description |
Clear-sky periods across the high latitudes have profound impacts on the surface energy budget and lower atmospheric stratification; however an understanding of the atmospheric processes leading to low-level cloud dissipation and formation events is limited. A method to identify clear periods at Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, during a 5-year period (2014–2018) is developed. A suite of remote sensing and in situ measurements from the high-latitude observatory are analyzed; we focus on comparing and contrasting atmospheric properties during low-level (below 2 km) cloud dissipation and formation events to understand the processes controlling clear-sky periods. Vertical profiles of lidar backscatter suggest that aerosol presence across the lower atmosphere is relatively invariant during the periods bookending clear conditions, which suggests that a sparsity of aerosol is not frequently a cause for cloud dissipation on the North Slope of Alaska. Further, meteorological analysis indicates two active processes ongoing that appear to support the formation of low clouds after a clear-sky period: namely, horizontal advection, which was dominant in winter and early spring, and quiescent air mass modification, which was dominant in the summer. During summer, the dominant mode of cloud formation is a low cloud or fog layer developing near the surface. This low cloud formation is driven largely by air mass modification under relatively quiescent synoptic conditions. Near-surface aerosol particles concentrations changed by a factor of 2 around summer formation events. Thermodynamic adjustment and increased aerosol presence under quiescent atmospheric conditions are hypothesized as important mechanisms for fog formation. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sedlar, Joseph Igel, Adele Telg, Hagen |
author_facet |
Sedlar, Joseph Igel, Adele Telg, Hagen |
author_sort |
Sedlar, Joseph |
title |
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
title_short |
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
title_full |
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
title_fullStr |
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
title_full_unstemmed |
Processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the North Slope of Alaska |
title_sort |
processes contributing to cloud dissipation and formation events on the north slope of alaska |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00055964 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00055615/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/4149/2021/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf |
genre |
Barrow north slope Alaska |
genre_facet |
Barrow north slope Alaska |
op_relation |
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics -- http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/volumes_and_issues.html -- http://www.bibliothek.uni-regensburg.de/ezeit/?2069847 -- 1680-7324 https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00055964 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00055615/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/4149/2021/acp-21-4149-2021.pdf |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ uneingeschränkt info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4149-2021 |
container_title |
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
container_volume |
21 |
container_issue |
5 |
container_start_page |
4149 |
op_container_end_page |
4167 |
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