Ice clouds in Artic : forming mechanisms

• Main Author: Jouan, Caroline
• Other Authors: Laboratoire de météorologie physique (LaMP), Université Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand 2 (UBP)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), TROPO - LATMOS, Laboratoire Atmosphères, Milieux, Observations Spatiales (LATMOS), Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Laboratoire de Météorologie Physique (LaMP), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Clermont Auvergne 2017-2020 (UCA 2017-2020 )-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand II, Jacques Pelon, Eric Girard
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: French
• Published: HAL CCSD 2013
• Subjects: Airborne and satellite measurements; Aerosol particles; Arctic ice clouds; Mesures aéroportées et satellitaires; Particules d’aérosol; Nuages de glace arctiques; [SDU.STU]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences; Arctic; Arctique*; polar night
• Online Access: https://theses.hal.science/tel-00843520; https://theses.hal.science/tel-00843520v2/document; https://theses.hal.science/tel-00843520v2/file/JOUAN_2013CLF22350.pdf

Arctic ice cloud formation during winter is poorly understood mainly due to the lack of observations and the remoteness of this region. Yet, their influence on Northern Hemisphere weather and climate is of paramount importance, and the modification of their properties, linked to aerosol-cloud interaction processes, needs to be better understood.Large concentration of aerosols in the Arctic during winter is associated to long-range transport of anthropogenic aerosols from the mid-latitudes to the Arctic. Observations and models show that this may lead to a significant transport of acidified aerosol particles. Laboratory and in-situ measurements show that at cold temperature (< -30°C), acidic coating may reduce the ice nucleating properties of ice nuclei (IN). Therefore, the IN concentration is reduced in these regions, resulting to a smaller concentration of larger ice crystals and because of the reduced competition for the same available moisture.Extensive measurements from ground-based sites and satellite remote sensing (CloudSat and CALIPSO) reveal the existence of two Types of Ice Clouds (TICs) in the Arctic during the polar night and early spring. The first Type of Ice Clouds (TIC-1) are visible only by the lidar while the second Type of Ice Clouds (TIC-2) are detected by both the lidar and radar. TIC-2 are divided into TIC-2A and TIC-2B. TIC-2A are topped by a cover of non-precipitating very small (radar-unseen) ice crystals (TIC-1), while TIC-2B are not. They are characterized by a low concentration of large ice crystals. It is hypothesized that the observed low concentration of large ice crystals, leading to precipitation (e.g. cloud regime TIC-2B), is linked to the acidification of aerosols. To check this, we are combining case studies and statistical approaches to analyse aerosol transport and cloud properties in the Arctic.The first part of the thesis investigate the microphysical properties of TIC-1/2A and TIC-2B, analysing airborne in-situ and satellite measurements of specific cases observed ...