LES Simulations of Roll Clouds Observed During Mixed- Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment

LES Simulations of Roll Clouds Observed During Mixed- Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment PDF Author:
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Languages : en
Pages : 5

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Book Description
Roll clouds, and associated roll convection, are fairly common features of the atmospheric boundary layer. While these organized cumuliform clouds are found over many regions of the planet, they are quite ubiquitous near the edge of the polar ice sheets. In particular, during periods of off-ice flow, when cold polar air flows from the ice pack over the relatively warm ocean water, strong boundary layer convection develops along with frequent rolls. According to Bruemmer and Pohlman (2000), most of the total cloud cover in the Arctic is due to roll clouds. In an effort to examine the influences of mixed-phase microphysics on the boundary layer evolution of roll clouds during off-ice flow, Olsson and Harrington (2000) used a 2D mesoscale model coupled to a bulk microphysical scheme (see Section 2). Their results showed that mixed-phase clouds produced more shallow boundary layers with weaker turbulence than liquid-phase cases. Furthermore, their results showed that because of th e reduced turbulent drag on the atmosphere in the mixed-phase case, regions of mesoscale divergence in the marginal ice-zone were significantly affected. A follow-up 2D study (Harrington and Olsson 2001) showed that the reduced turbulent intensity in mixed-phase cases was due to precipitation. Ice precipitation caused downdraft stabilization which fed back and caused a reduction in the surface heat fluxes. In this work, we extend the work of Olsson and Harrington (2000) and Harrington and Olsson (2001) by examining the impacts of ice microphysics on roll convection. We will present results that illustrate how microphysics alters roll cloud structure and dynamics.

LES Simulations of Roll Clouds Observed During Mixed- Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment

LES Simulations of Roll Clouds Observed During Mixed- Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 5

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Book Description
Roll clouds, and associated roll convection, are fairly common features of the atmospheric boundary layer. While these organized cumuliform clouds are found over many regions of the planet, they are quite ubiquitous near the edge of the polar ice sheets. In particular, during periods of off-ice flow, when cold polar air flows from the ice pack over the relatively warm ocean water, strong boundary layer convection develops along with frequent rolls. According to Bruemmer and Pohlman (2000), most of the total cloud cover in the Arctic is due to roll clouds. In an effort to examine the influences of mixed-phase microphysics on the boundary layer evolution of roll clouds during off-ice flow, Olsson and Harrington (2000) used a 2D mesoscale model coupled to a bulk microphysical scheme (see Section 2). Their results showed that mixed-phase clouds produced more shallow boundary layers with weaker turbulence than liquid-phase cases. Furthermore, their results showed that because of th e reduced turbulent drag on the atmosphere in the mixed-phase case, regions of mesoscale divergence in the marginal ice-zone were significantly affected. A follow-up 2D study (Harrington and Olsson 2001) showed that the reduced turbulent intensity in mixed-phase cases was due to precipitation. Ice precipitation caused downdraft stabilization which fed back and caused a reduction in the surface heat fluxes. In this work, we extend the work of Olsson and Harrington (2000) and Harrington and Olsson (2001) by examining the impacts of ice microphysics on roll convection. We will present results that illustrate how microphysics alters roll cloud structure and dynamics.

Intercomparison of Model Simulations of Mixed-phase Clouds Observed During the ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. Part I

Intercomparison of Model Simulations of Mixed-phase Clouds Observed During the ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. Part I PDF Author:
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Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 80

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Book Description
Results are presented from an intercomparison of single-column and cloud-resolving model simulations of a cold-air outbreak mixed-phase stratocumulus cloud observed during the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) program's Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. The observed cloud occurred in a well-mixed boundary layer with a cloud top temperature of -15 C. The observed liquid water path of around 160 g m−2 was about two-thirds of the adiabatic value and much greater than the mass of ice crystal precipitation which when integrated from the surface to cloud top was around 15 g m−2. The simulations were performed by seventeen single-column models (SCMs) and nine cloud-resolving models (CRMs). While the simulated ice water path is generally consistent with the observed values, the median SCM and CRM liquid water path is a factor of three smaller than observed. Results from a sensitivity study in which models removed ice microphysics indicate that in many models the interaction between liquid and ice-phase microphysics is responsible for the large model underestimate of liquid water path. Despite this general underestimate, the simulated liquid and ice water paths of several models are consistent with the observed values. Furthermore, there is some evidence that models with more sophisticated microphysics simulate liquid and ice water paths that are in better agreement with the observed values, although considerable scatter is also present. Although no single factor guarantees a good simulation, these results emphasize the need for improvement in the model representation of mixed-phase microphysics. This case study, which has been well observed from both aircraft and ground-based remote sensors, could be a benchmark for model simulations of mixed-phase clouds.

Intercomparison of Model Simulations of Mixed-phase Clouds Observed During the ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. Part II

Intercomparison of Model Simulations of Mixed-phase Clouds Observed During the ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. Part II PDF Author:
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ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 65

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Book Description
Results are presented from an intercomparison of single-column and cloud-resolving model simulations of a deep, multi-layered, mixed-phase cloud system observed during the ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment. This cloud system was associated with strong surface turbulent sensible and latent heat fluxes as cold air flowed over the open Arctic Ocean, combined with a low pressure system that supplied moisture at mid-level. The simulations, performed by 13 single-column and 4 cloud-resolving models, generally overestimate the liquid water path and strongly underestimate the ice water path, although there is a large spread among the models. This finding is in contrast with results for the single-layer, low-level mixed-phase stratocumulus case in Part I of this study, as well as previous studies of shallow mixed-phase Arctic clouds, that showed an underprediction of liquid water path. The overestimate of liquid water path and underestimate of ice water path occur primarily when deeper mixed-phase clouds extending into the mid-troposphere were observed. These results suggest important differences in the ability of models to simulate Arctic mixed-phase clouds that are deep and multi-layered versus shallow and single-layered. In general, models with a more sophisticated, two-moment treatment of the cloud microphysics produce a somewhat smaller liquid water path that is closer to observations. The cloud-resolving models tend to produce a larger cloud fraction than the single-column models. The liquid water path and especially the cloud fraction have a large impact on the cloud radiative forcing at the surface, which is dominated by the longwave flux for this case.

Arctic mixed-phase clouds : Macro- and microphysical insights with a numerical model

Arctic mixed-phase clouds : Macro- and microphysical insights with a numerical model PDF Author: Loewe, Katharina
Publisher: KIT Scientific Publishing
ISBN: 3731506866
Category : Physics
Languages : en
Pages : 174

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Book Description
This work provides new insights into macro- and microphysical properties of Arctic mixed-phase clouds: first, by comparing semi-idealized large eddy simulations with observations; second, by dissecting the influences of different surface types and boundary layer structures on Arctic mixed- phase clouds; third, by elucidating the dissipation process; and finally by analyzing the main microphysical processes inside Arctic mixed-phase clouds.

Simulations of Arctic Mixed-phase Clouds in Forecasts with CAM3 and AM2 for M-PACE.

Simulations of Arctic Mixed-phase Clouds in Forecasts with CAM3 and AM2 for M-PACE. PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 45

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Book Description
[1] Simulations of mixed-phase clouds in forecasts with the NCAR Atmosphere Model version 3 (CAM3) and the GFDL Atmospheric Model version 2 (AM2) for the Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (M-PACE) are performed using analysis data from numerical weather prediction centers. CAM3 significantly underestimates the observed boundary layer mixed-phase cloud fraction and cannot realistically simulate the variations of liquid water fraction with temperature and cloud height due to its oversimplified cloud microphysical scheme. In contrast, AM2 reasonably reproduces the observed boundary layer cloud fraction while its clouds contain much less cloud condensate than CAM3 and the observations. The simulation of the boundary layer mixed-phase clouds and their microphysical properties is considerably improved in CAM3 when a new physically based cloud microphysical scheme is used (CAM3LIU). The new scheme also leads to an improved simulation of the surface and top of the atmosphere longwave radiative fluxes. Sensitivity tests show that these results are not sensitive to the analysis data used for model initialization. Increasing model horizontal resolution helps capture the subgrid-scale features in Arctic frontal clouds but does not help improve the simulation of the single-layer boundary layer clouds. AM2 simulated cloud fraction and LWP are sensitive to the change in cloud ice number concentrations used in the Wegener-Bergeron-Findeisen process while CAM3LIU only shows moderate sensitivity in its cloud fields to this change. Furthermore, this paper shows that the Wegener-Bergeron-Findeisen process is important for these models to correctly simulate the observed features of mixed-phase clouds.

Simulating Mixed-phase Arctic Stratus Clouds

Simulating Mixed-phase Arctic Stratus Clouds PDF Author:
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ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The importance of Arctic mixed-phase clouds on radiation and the Arctic climate is well known. However, the development of mixed-phase cloud parameterization for use in large scale models is limited by lack of both related observations and numerical studies using multidimensional models with advanced microphysics that provide the basis for understanding the relative importance of different microphysical processes that take place in mixed-phase clouds. To improve the representation of mixed-phase cloud processes in the GISS GCM we use the GISS single-column model coupled to a bin resolved microphysics (BRM) scheme that was specially designed to simulate mixed-phase clouds and aerosol-cloud interactions. Using this model with the microphysical measurements obtained from the DOE ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (MPACE) campaign in October 2004 at the North Slope of Alaska, we investigate the effect of ice initiation processes and Bergeron-Findeisen process (BFP) on glaciation time and longevity of single-layer stratiform mixed-phase clouds. We focus on observations taken during October 9th-10th, which indicated the presence of a single-layer mixed-phase clouds. We performed several sets of 12-hour simulations to examine model sensitivity to different ice initiation mechanisms and evaluate model output (hydrometeors concentrations, contents, effective radii, precipitation fluxes, and radar reflectivity) against measurements from the MPACE Intensive Observing Period. Overall, the model qualitatively simulates ice crystal concentration and hydrometeors content, but it fails to predict quantitatively the effective radii of ice particles and their vertical profiles. In particular, the ice effective radii are overestimated by at least 50%. However, using the same definition as used for observations, the effective radii simulated and that observed were more comparable. We find that for the single-layer stratiform mixed-phase clouds simulated, process of ice phase initiation due to freezing of supercooled water in both saturated and subsaturated (w.r.t. water) environments is as important as primary ice crystal origination from water vapor. We also find that the BFP is a process mainly responsible for the rates of glaciation of simulated clouds. These glaciation rates cannot be adequately represented by a water-ice saturation adjustment scheme that only depends on temperature and liquid and solid hydrometeors contents as is widely used in bulk microphysics schemes and are better represented by processes that also account for supersaturation changes as the hydrometeors grow.

Simulating Mixed-phase Arctic Stratus Clouds

Simulating Mixed-phase Arctic Stratus Clouds PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The importance of Arctic mixed-phase clouds on radiation and the Arctic climate is well known. However, the development of mixed-phase cloud parameterization for use in large scale models is limited by lack of both related observations and numerical studies using multidimensional models with advanced microphysics that provide the basis for understanding the relative importance of different microphysical processes that take place in mixed-phase clouds. To improve the representation of mixed-phase cloud processes in the GISS GCM we use the GISS single-column model coupled to a bin resolved microphysics (BRM) scheme that was specially designed to simulate mixed-phase clouds and aerosol-cloud interactions. Using this model with the microphysical measurements obtained from the DOE ARM Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (MPACE) campaign in October 2004 at the North Slope of Alaska, we investigate the effect of ice initiation processes and Bergeron-Findeisen process (BFP) on glaciation time and longevity of single-layer stratiform mixed-phase clouds. We focus on observations taken during 9th-10th October, which indicated the presence of a single-layer mixed-phase clouds. We performed several sets of 12-h simulations to examine model sensitivity to different ice initiation mechanisms and evaluate model output (hydrometeors concentrations, contents, effective radii, precipitation fluxes, and radar reflectivity) against measurements from the MPACE Intensive Observing Period. Overall, the model qualitatively simulates ice crystal concentration and hydrometeors content, but it fails to predict quantitatively the effective radii of ice particles and their vertical profiles. In particular, the ice effective radii are overestimated by at least 50%. However, using the same definition as used for observations, the effective radii simulated and that observed were more comparable. We find that for the single-layer stratiform mixed-phase clouds simulated, process of ice phase initiation due to freezing of supercooled water in both saturated and undersaturated (w.r.t. water) environments is as important as primary ice crystal origination from water vapor. We also find that the BFP is a process mainly responsible for the rates of glaciation of simulated clouds. These glaciation rates cannot be adequately represented by a water-ice saturation adjustment scheme that only depends on temperature and liquid and solid hydrometeors contents as is widely used in bulk microphysics schemes and are better represented by processes that also account for supersaturation changes as the hydrometeors grow.

Fine-scale Horizontal Structure of Arctic Mixed-Phase Clouds

Fine-scale Horizontal Structure of Arctic Mixed-Phase Clouds PDF Author: M. Shupe
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Recent in situ observations in stratiform clouds suggest that mixed phase regimes, here defined as limited cloud volumes containing both liquid and solid water, are constrained to narrow layers (order 100 m) separating all-liquid and fully glaciated volumes (Hallett and Viddaurre, 2005). The Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program's (DOE-ARM, Ackerman and Stokes, 2003) North Slope of Alaska (NSA) ARM Climate Research Facility (ACRF) recently started collecting routine measurement of radar Doppler velocity power spectra from the Millimeter Cloud Radar (MMCR). Shupe et al. (2004) showed that Doppler spectra has potential to separate the contributions to the total reflectivity of the liquid and solid water in the radar volume, and thus to investigate further Hallett and Viddaurre's findings. The Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (MPACE) was conducted along the NSA to investigate the properties of Arctic mixed phase clouds (Verlinde et al., 2006). We present surface based remote sensing data from MPACE to discuss the fine-scale structure of the mixed-phase clouds observed during this experiment.

Numerical Modeling of Arctic Mixed-phase Layered Clouds

Numerical Modeling of Arctic Mixed-phase Layered Clouds PDF Author: Yaosheng Chen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Arctic mixed-phase clouds are often multi-layered. Different cloud layers interact through radiation as well as ice precipitation falling from upper layer clouds into the lower layer clouds. The evolution of an Arctic mixed-phase stratiform cloud under prescribed perturbations from an overlaying cloud in the form of downwelling longwave radiation and ice precipitation was simulated and documented. The perturbations created regions with heterogeneous properties in the horizontal direction within the lower level cloud, the consequence of which was the development of a mesoscale circulation that propagated the perturbations well beyond the location of the initial perturbed region.In a separate study, we forward modeled radar Doppler spectra based on a large-eddy simulation (LES) model simulation of a single layer Arctic mixed-phase cloud and compared the modeled quantities with those retrieved from the observations. We show that there was a significant contribution from the microphysical broadening to the cloud radar Doppler spectral width in Arctic mixed-phase clouds. LES simulations configured with different ice particle characteristics captured different aspects of the observations in the simulated case, where a mixture of ice particles of different properties were likely present. The dynamics of the LES simulations, characterized with the total turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate, agreed fairly well with the values retrieved from the observations. Due to significant numerical dissipation in the model for the case evaluated here, the TKE dissipation rate from the subgrid-scale model did not represent the dissipation rate in the model.

Evaluation of Mixed-Phase Cloud Microphysics Parameterizations with the NCAR Single Column Climate Model (SCAM) and ARM Observations

Evaluation of Mixed-Phase Cloud Microphysics Parameterizations with the NCAR Single Column Climate Model (SCAM) and ARM Observations PDF Author:
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Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Mixed-phase stratus clouds are ubiquitous in the Arctic and play an important role in climate in this region. However, climate models have generally proven unsuccessful at simulating the partitioning of condensed water into liquid droplets and ice crystals in these Arctic clouds, which affect modeled cloud phase, cloud lifetime and radiative properties. An ice nucleation parameterization and a vapor deposition scheme were developed that together provide a physically-consistent treatment of mixed-phase clouds in global climate models. These schemes have been implemented in the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Community Atmospheric Model Version 3 (CAM3). This report documents the performance of these schemes against ARM Mixed-phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (M-PACE) observations using the CAM single column model version (SCAM). SCAM with our new schemes has a more realistic simulation of the cloud phase structure and the partitioning of condensed water into liquid droplets against observations during the M-PACE than the standard CAM simulations.