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Title: Mixed-phase cloud physics and Southern Ocean cloud feedback in climate models

Abstract

Abstract Increasing optical depth poleward of 45° is a robust response to warming in global climate models. Much of this cloud optical depth increase has been hypothesized to be due to transitions from ice‐dominated to liquid‐dominated mixed‐phase cloud. In this study, the importance of liquid‐ice partitioning for the optical depth feedback is quantified for 19 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 models. All models show a monotonic partitioning of ice and liquid as a function of temperature, but the temperature at which ice and liquid are equally mixed (the glaciation temperature) varies by as much as 40 K across models. Models that have a higher glaciation temperature are found to have a smaller climatological liquid water path (LWP) and condensed water path and experience a larger increase in LWP as the climate warms. The ice‐liquid partitioning curve of each model may be used to calculate the response of LWP to warming. It is found that the repartitioning between ice and liquid in a warming climate contributes at least 20% to 80% of the increase in LWP as the climate warms, depending on model. Intermodel differences in the climatological partitioning between ice and liquid are estimated to contribute at least 20% tomore » the intermodel spread in the high‐latitude LWP response in the mixed‐phase region poleward of 45°S. It is hypothesized that a more thorough evaluation and constraint of global climate model mixed‐phase cloud parameterizations and validation of the total condensate and ice‐liquid apportionment against observations will yield a substantial reduction in model uncertainty in the high‐latitude cloud response to warming.« less

Authors:
 [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [4]
  1. Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States)
  2. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
  3. Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States); Univ. of Reading, Reading (United Kingdom)
  4. Univ. of Leeds, Leeds (United Kingdom)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1410025
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1402221
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-741060
Journal ID: ISSN 2169-897X
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC52-07NA27344; DE‐SC0012580
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 120; Journal Issue: 18; Journal ID: ISSN 2169-897X
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
58 GEOSCIENCES; climate; Southern Ocean; feedbacks; mixed phase; clouds

Citation Formats

McCoy, Daniel T., Hartmann, Dennis L., Zelinka, Mark D., Ceppi, Paulo, and Grosvenor, Daniel P. Mixed-phase cloud physics and Southern Ocean cloud feedback in climate models. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.1002/2015JD023603.
McCoy, Daniel T., Hartmann, Dennis L., Zelinka, Mark D., Ceppi, Paulo, & Grosvenor, Daniel P. Mixed-phase cloud physics and Southern Ocean cloud feedback in climate models. United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JD023603
McCoy, Daniel T., Hartmann, Dennis L., Zelinka, Mark D., Ceppi, Paulo, and Grosvenor, Daniel P. Fri . "Mixed-phase cloud physics and Southern Ocean cloud feedback in climate models". United States. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JD023603. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1410025.
@article{osti_1410025,
title = {Mixed-phase cloud physics and Southern Ocean cloud feedback in climate models},
author = {McCoy, Daniel T. and Hartmann, Dennis L. and Zelinka, Mark D. and Ceppi, Paulo and Grosvenor, Daniel P.},
abstractNote = {Abstract Increasing optical depth poleward of 45° is a robust response to warming in global climate models. Much of this cloud optical depth increase has been hypothesized to be due to transitions from ice‐dominated to liquid‐dominated mixed‐phase cloud. In this study, the importance of liquid‐ice partitioning for the optical depth feedback is quantified for 19 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 models. All models show a monotonic partitioning of ice and liquid as a function of temperature, but the temperature at which ice and liquid are equally mixed (the glaciation temperature) varies by as much as 40 K across models. Models that have a higher glaciation temperature are found to have a smaller climatological liquid water path (LWP) and condensed water path and experience a larger increase in LWP as the climate warms. The ice‐liquid partitioning curve of each model may be used to calculate the response of LWP to warming. It is found that the repartitioning between ice and liquid in a warming climate contributes at least 20% to 80% of the increase in LWP as the climate warms, depending on model. Intermodel differences in the climatological partitioning between ice and liquid are estimated to contribute at least 20% to the intermodel spread in the high‐latitude LWP response in the mixed‐phase region poleward of 45°S. It is hypothesized that a more thorough evaluation and constraint of global climate model mixed‐phase cloud parameterizations and validation of the total condensate and ice‐liquid apportionment against observations will yield a substantial reduction in model uncertainty in the high‐latitude cloud response to warming.},
doi = {10.1002/2015JD023603},
journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres},
number = 18,
volume = 120,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Aug 21 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Fri Aug 21 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}

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