Observed Increase of TTL Temperature and Water Vapor in Polluted Couds over Asia

Journal Article · Wed Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 2011 · Journal of Climate, 24(11):2728-2736

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1175/2010JCLI3749.1· OSTI ID:1023191

Su, Hui; Jiang, Jonathan; Liu, Xiaohong; Penner, J; Read, William G; Massie, Steven T; Schoeberl, Mark R; Colarco, Peter; Livesey, Nathaniel J; Santee, Michelle L

Aerosols can affect cloud particle size and lifetime, which impacts precipitation, radiation and climate. Previous studies1-4 suggested that reduced ice cloud particle size and fall speed due to the influence of aerosols may increase evaporation of ice crystals and/or cloud radiative heating in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL), leading to higher water vapor abundance in air entering the stratosphere. Observational substantiation of such processes is still lacking. Here, we analyze new observations from multiple NASA satellites to show the imprint of pollution influence on stratospheric water vapor. We focus our analysis on the highly-polluted South and East Asia region during boreal summer. We find that "polluted" ice clouds have smaller ice effective radius than "clean" clouds. In the TTL, the polluted clouds are associated with warmer temperature and higher specific humidity than the clean clouds. The water vapor difference between the polluted and clean clouds cannot be explained by other meteorological factors, such as updraft and detrainment strength. Therefore, the observed higher water vapor entry value into the stratosphere in the polluted clouds than in the clean clouds is likely a manifestation of aerosol pollution influence on stratospheric water vapor. Given the radiative and chemical importance of stratospheric water vapor, the increasing emission of aerosols over Asia may have profound impacts on stratospheric chemistry and global energy balance and water cycle.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (US)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 1023191
• Report Number(s): PNNL-SA-66672; KP1701000
• Journal Information: Journal of Climate, 24(11):2728-2736, Journal Name: Journal of Climate, 24(11):2728-2736 Journal Issue: 11 Vol. 24; ISSN JLCLEL; ISSN 0894-8755
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ABUNDANCE
AEROSOLS
ASIA
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
CLOUDS
ENERGY BALANCE
EVAPORATION
HEATING
HUMIDITY
ICE
PARTICLE SIZE
POLLUTION
RADIATIONS
STRATOSPHERE
TROPOPAUSE
VELOCITY
WATER VAPOR