Identification

Title

Multi-layer arctic mixed-phase clouds simulated by a cloud-resolving model: Comparision with ARM observations and sensitivity experiments

Abstract

A cloud-resolving model (CRM) is used to simulate the multiple-layer mixed-phase stratiform (MPS) clouds that occurred during a three-and-a-half day subperiod of the Department of Energy-Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program's Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (M-PACE) and to examine physical processes responsible for multilayer production and evolution. The CRM with a two-moment cloud microphysics is initialized with concurrent meteorological, aerosol, and ice nucleus measurements and is driven by time-varying large-scale advective tendencies of temperature and moisture and surface sensible and latent heat fluxes. The CRM reproduces the dominant occurrences of the single- and double-layer MPS clouds as revealed by the M-PACE observations although the simulated first cloud layer is lower and the second cloud layer is thicker compared to observations. The aircraft measurements suggest that the CRM qualitatively captures the major characteristics in the vertical distribution and interperiod variation of liquid water content (LWC), droplet number concentration, total ice water content (IWC), and ice crystal number concentration (nis). However, the magnitude of LWC is overestimated and those of IWC and nis are underestimated. In particular, the simulated nis is one order of magnitude smaller than the observed. Sensitivity experiments suggest that both the surface fluxes and large-scale advection control the formation of the lower cloud layer while the large-scale advection initiates the formation of the upper cloud layer but the maintenance of multilayer structures relies on the longwave (LW) radiative effect. The LW cooling near cloud top produces a more saturated environment and a stronger dynamical circulation while cloud base radiative warming of the upper layer creates the stability gap between the two cloud layers. Both cloud layers are sensitive to ice-forming nuclei number concentration since ice-phase microphysics provides a strong sink of cloud liquid water mass.

Resource type

document

Resource locator

Unique resource identifier

code

https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7m908ws

codeSpace

Dataset language

eng

Spatial reference system

code identifying the spatial reference system

Classification of spatial data and services

Topic category

geoscientificInformation

Keywords

Keyword set

keyword value

Text

originating controlled vocabulary

title

Resource Type

reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2016-01-01T00:00:00Z

Geographic location

West bounding longitude

East bounding longitude

North bounding latitude

South bounding latitude

Temporal reference

Temporal extent

Begin position

End position

Dataset reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2008-06-25T00:00:00Z

Frequency of update

Quality and validity

Lineage

Conformity

Data format

name of format

version of format

Constraints related to access and use

Constraint set

Use constraints

Limitations on public access

None

Responsible organisations

Responsible party

contact position

OpenSky Support

organisation name

UCAR/NCAR - Library

full postal address

PO Box 3000

Boulder

80307-3000

email address

opensky@ucar.edu

web address

http://opensky.ucar.edu/

name: homepage

responsible party role

pointOfContact

Metadata on metadata

Metadata point of contact