New understanding and quantification of the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interaction for studying aerosol indirect effects
Abstract
In this study, aerosol indirect effects suffer from large uncertainty in climate models and among observations. This study focuses on two plausible factors: regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interactions and the effect of cloud droplet spectral shape. We show, using a new parcel model, that combined consideration of droplet number concentration (Nc) and relative dispersion (ε, ratio of standard deviation to mean radius of the cloud droplet size distribution) better characterizes the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interactions than considering Nc alone. Given updraft velocity (w), ε increases with increasing aerosol number concentration (Na) in the aerosol-limited regime, peaks in the transitional regime, and decreases with further increasing Na in the updraft-limited regime. This new finding further reconciles contrasting observations in literature and reinforces the compensating role of dispersion effect. The nonmonotonic behavior of ε further quantifies the relationship between the transitional Na and w that separates the aerosol- and updraft-limited regimes.
- Authors:
-
- Stony Brook Univ., Stony Brook, NY (United States)
- Stony Brook Univ., Stony Brook, NY (United States); Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
- Tsinghua Univ., Beijing (China)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1245387
- Report Number(s):
- BNL-111944-2016-JA
Journal ID: ISSN 0094-8276; R&D Project: 2016-BNL-EE631EECA-Budg; KP1703020
- Grant/Contract Number:
- SC00112704
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Geophysical Research Letters
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 43; Journal Issue: 4; Journal ID: ISSN 0094-8276
- Publisher:
- American Geophysical Union
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Citation Formats
Chen, Jingyi, Liu, Yangang, Zhang, Minghua, and Peng, Yiran. New understanding and quantification of the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interaction for studying aerosol indirect effects. United States: N. p., 2016.
Web. doi:10.1002/2016GL067683.
Chen, Jingyi, Liu, Yangang, Zhang, Minghua, & Peng, Yiran. New understanding and quantification of the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interaction for studying aerosol indirect effects. United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL067683
Chen, Jingyi, Liu, Yangang, Zhang, Minghua, and Peng, Yiran. Sun .
"New understanding and quantification of the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interaction for studying aerosol indirect effects". United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL067683. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1245387.
@article{osti_1245387,
title = {New understanding and quantification of the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interaction for studying aerosol indirect effects},
author = {Chen, Jingyi and Liu, Yangang and Zhang, Minghua and Peng, Yiran},
abstractNote = {In this study, aerosol indirect effects suffer from large uncertainty in climate models and among observations. This study focuses on two plausible factors: regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interactions and the effect of cloud droplet spectral shape. We show, using a new parcel model, that combined consideration of droplet number concentration (Nc) and relative dispersion (ε, ratio of standard deviation to mean radius of the cloud droplet size distribution) better characterizes the regime dependence of aerosol-cloud interactions than considering Nc alone. Given updraft velocity (w), ε increases with increasing aerosol number concentration (Na) in the aerosol-limited regime, peaks in the transitional regime, and decreases with further increasing Na in the updraft-limited regime. This new finding further reconciles contrasting observations in literature and reinforces the compensating role of dispersion effect. The nonmonotonic behavior of ε further quantifies the relationship between the transitional Na and w that separates the aerosol- and updraft-limited regimes.},
doi = {10.1002/2016GL067683},
journal = {Geophysical Research Letters},
number = 4,
volume = 43,
place = {United States},
year = {Sun Feb 28 00:00:00 EST 2016},
month = {Sun Feb 28 00:00:00 EST 2016}
}
Free Publicly Available Full Text
Publisher's Version of Record
Other availability
Search WorldCat to find libraries that may hold this journal
Cited by: 50 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science
Web of Science
Save to My Library
You must Sign In or Create an Account in order to save documents to your library.
Works referenced in this record:
Observations of the first aerosol indirect effect in shallow cumuli: FIRST AEROSOL INDIRECT EFFECT IN CUMULI
journal, February 2011
- Berg, Larry K.; Berkowitz, Carl M.; Barnard, James C.
- Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 38, Issue 3
VODE: A Variable-Coefficient ODE Solver
journal, September 1989
- Brown, Peter N.; Byrne, George D.; Hindmarsh, Alan C.
- SIAM Journal on Scientific and Statistical Computing, Vol. 10, Issue 5
Droplet Spectra Broadening by Ripening Process. Part I: Roles of Curvature and Salinity of Cloud Droplets
journal, September 1999
- Çelik, Fikrettin; Marwitz, John D.
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 56, Issue 17
Occurrence of lower cloud albedo in ship tracks
journal, January 2012
- Chen, Y. -C.; Christensen, M. W.; Xue, L.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 12, Issue 17
Impacts of black carbon mixing state on black carbon nucleation scavenging: Insights from a particle-resolved model: PARTMC-MOSAIC BLACK CARBON MIXING STATE
journal, December 2012
- Ching, J.; Riemer, N.; West, M.
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 117, Issue D23
Analysis of the Influence of Film-Forming Compounds on Droplet Growth: Implications for Cloud Microphysical Processes and Climate
journal, June 2002
- Feingold, Graham; Chuang, Patrick Y.
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 59, Issue 12
Droplet nucleation: Physically-based parameterizations and comparative evaluation: DROPLET NUCLEATION
journal, April 2011
- Ghan, Steven J.; Abdul-Razzak, Hayder; Nenes, Athanasios
- Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems, Vol. 3, Issue 4
Cirrus Crystal Nucleation by Homogeneous Freezing of Solution Droplets
journal, July 1989
- Heymsfield, Andrew J.; Sabin, Robert M.
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 46, Issue 14
The Growth of Cloud Drops in Uniformly Cooled air
journal, April 1949
- Howell, Wallace E.
- Journal of Meteorology, Vol. 6, Issue 2
Reply to comment by Yangang Liu et al. on “Cloud droplet spectral width relationship to CCN spectra and vertical velocity”: COMMENTARY
journal, January 2014
- Hudson, James G.; Noble, Stephen
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 119, Issue 4
Cloud droplet spectral width relationship to CCN spectra and vertical velocity: DROP SPECTRAL WIDTH RELATIONSHIP TO CCN
journal, June 2012
- Hudson, James G.; Noble, Stephen; Jha, Vandana
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 117, Issue D11
The nucleus in and the growth of hygroscopic droplets
journal, January 1936
- Köhler, Hilding
- Trans. Faraday Soc., Vol. 32, Issue 0
Physics and Chemistry of Clouds
book, January 2011
- Lamb, Dennis; Verlinde, Johannes
- Cambridge University Press
Cloud droplet nucleation and cloud scavenging of aerosol sulphate in polluted atmospheres
journal, August 1986
- Leaitch, W. R.; Strapp, J. W.; Isaac, G. A.
- Tellus B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology, Vol. 38, Issue 5
Indirect warming effect from dispersion forcing
journal, October 2002
- Liu, Yangang; Daum, Peter H.
- Nature, Vol. 419, Issue 6907
Analytical expression for the relative dispersion of the cloud droplet size distribution
journal, January 2006
- Liu, Yangang; Daum, Peter H.; Yum, Seong Soo
- Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 33, Issue 2
Dispersion bias, dispersion effect, and the aerosol–cloud conundrum
journal, October 2008
- Liu, Yangang; Daum, Peter H.; Guo, Huan
- Environmental Research Letters, Vol. 3, Issue 4
Stronger Constraints on the Anthropogenic Indirect Aerosol Effect
journal, November 2002
- Lohmann, U.; Lesins, G.
- Science, Vol. 298, Issue 5595
Observed impacts of vertical velocity on cloud microphysics and implications for aerosol indirect effects: IMPACTS OF UPDRAFT ON CLOUD MICROPHYSICS
journal, November 2012
- Lu, Chunsong; Liu, Yangang; Niu, Shengjie
- Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 39, Issue 21
The Marine Stratus/Stratocumulus Experiment (MASE): Aerosol-cloud relationships in marine stratocumulus: MASE-AEROSOL-CLOUD RELATIONSHIPS
journal, May 2007
- Lu, Miao-Ling; Conant, William C.; Jonsson, Haflidi H.
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 112, Issue D10
Strong air pollution causes widespread haze-clouds over China
journal, January 2010
- Ma, Jianzhong; Chen, Yue; Wang, Wei
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 115, Issue D18
The impact of smoke from forest fires on the spectral dispersion of cloud droplet size distributions in the Amazonian region
journal, January 2009
- Martins, J. A.; Silva Dias, M. A. F.
- Environmental Research Letters, Vol. 4, Issue 1
Aerosol effect on droplet spectral dispersion in warm continental cumuli: DISPERSION EFFECT IN CONTINENTAL CUMULI
journal, August 2012
- Pandithurai, G.; Dipu, S.; Prabha, Thara V.
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 117, Issue D16
Sensitivity study of the spectral dispersion of the cloud droplet size distribution on the indirect aerosol effect: CLOUD DROPLET DISPERSION EFFECT
journal, May 2003
- Peng, Yiran; Lohmann, Ulrike
- Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 30, Issue 10
An investigation into the aerosol dispersion effect through the activation process in marine stratus clouds
journal, January 2007
- Peng, Yiran; Lohmann, Ulrike; Leaitch, Richard
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 112, Issue D11
Model intercomparison of indirect aerosol effects
journal, January 2006
- Penner, J. E.; Quaas, J.; Storelvmo, T.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 6, Issue 11
A single parameter representation of hygroscopic growth and cloud condensation nucleus activity
journal, January 2007
- Petters, M. D.; Kreidenweis, S. M.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 7, Issue 8
Rainforest Aerosols as Biogenic Nuclei of Clouds and Precipitation in the Amazon
journal, September 2010
- Poschl, U.; Martin, S. T.; Sinha, B.
- Science, Vol. 329, Issue 5998
Aerosol- and updraft-limited regimes of cloud droplet formation: influence of particle number, size and hygroscopicity on the activation of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN)
journal, January 2009
- Reutter, P.; Su, H.; Trentmann, J.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 9, Issue 18
Sensitivity of the First Indirect Aerosol Effect to an Increase of Cloud Droplet Spectral Dispersion with Droplet Number Concentration
journal, November 2003
- Rotstayn, Leon D.; Liu, Yangang
- Journal of Climate, Vol. 16, Issue 21
Cloud droplet spectral dispersion and the indirect aerosol effect: Comparison of two treatments in a GCM
journal, January 2009
- Rotstayn, Leon D.; Liu, Yangang
- Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 36, Issue 10
Is there evidence for an aerosol indirect effect during the recent aerosol optical depth decline in Europe?
journal, January 2010
- Ruckstuhl, Christian; Norris, Joel R.; Philipona, Rolf
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 115, Issue D4
A Large-Droplet Mode and Prognostic Number Concentration of Cloud Droplets in the Colorado State University Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS). Part I: Module Descriptions and Supercell Test Simulations
journal, January 2004
- Saleeby, Stephen M.; Cotton, William R.
- Journal of Applied Meteorology, Vol. 43, Issue 1
The effect of organic compounds on the growth rate of cloud droplets in marine and forest settings
journal, January 2008
- Shantz, N. C.; Leaitch, W. R.; Phinney, L.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 8, Issue 19
Slower CCN growth kinetics of anthropogenic aerosol compared to biogenic aerosol observed at a rural site
journal, January 2010
- Shantz, N. C.; Chang, R. Y. -W.; Slowik, J. G.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 10, Issue 1
Untangling aerosol effects on clouds and precipitation in a buffered system
journal, October 2009
- Stevens, Bjorn; Feingold, Graham
- Nature, Vol. 461, Issue 7264
The nuclei of natural cloud formation part II: The supersaturation in natural clouds and the variation of cloud droplet concentration
journal, May 1959
- Twomey, S.
- Geofisica Pura e Applicata, Vol. 43, Issue 1
Pollution and the planetary albedo
journal, December 1974
- Twomey, S.
- Atmospheric Environment (1967), Vol. 8, Issue 12
The Influence of Pollution on the Shortwave Albedo of Clouds
journal, July 1977
- Twomey, S.
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 34, Issue 7
How Important Is the Spectral Ripening Effect in Stratiform Boundary Layer Clouds? Studies Using Simple Trajectory Analysis
journal, September 2002
- Wood, R.; Irons, S.; Jonas, P. R.
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 59, Issue 18
A modeling study of the effect of nitric acid on cloud properties
journal, January 2004
- Xue, Huiwen
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 109, Issue D18
Adiabatic predictions and observations of cloud droplet spectral broadness
journal, February 2005
- Yum, Seong Soo; Hudson, James G.
- Atmospheric Research, Vol. 73, Issue 3-4
Cloud droplet nucleation and cloud scavenging of aerosol sulphate in polluted atmospheres
journal, November 1986
- Leaitch, W. R.; Strapp, J. W.; Isaac, G. A.
- Tellus B, Vol. 38B, Issue 5
Pollution and the Planetary Albedo
journal, January 2007
- Twomey, S.
- Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 41
A single parameter representation of hygroscopic growth and cloud condensation nucleus activity
journal, January 2006
- Petters, M. D.; Kreidenweis, S. M.
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions, Vol. 6, Issue 5
Works referencing / citing this record:
An Observational Study on Cloud Spectral Width in North China
journal, March 2019
- Wang, Yuan; Niu, Shengjie; Lu, Chunsong
- Atmosphere, Vol. 10, Issue 3
Exploring aerosol–cloud interaction using VOCALS-REx aircraft measurements
journal, January 2019
- Jia, Hailing; Ma, Xiaoyan; Liu, Yangang
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 19, Issue 12
Incorporation of inline warm rain diagnostics into the COSP2 satellite simulator for process-oriented model evaluation
journal, January 2019
- Michibata, Takuro; Suzuki, Kentaroh; Ogura, Tomoo
- Geoscientific Model Development, Vol. 12, Issue 10