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Title: Developing and bounding ice particle mass- and area-dimension expressions for use in atmospheric models and remote sensing

Journal Article · · Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (Online)
 [1];  [2]
  1. Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV (United States); Univ. of Nevada, Reno, NV (United States).
  2. Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV (United States)

Here, ice particle mass- and projected area-dimension (m-D and A-D) power laws are commonly used in the treatment of ice cloud microphysical and optical properties and the remote sensing of ice cloud properties. Although there has long been evidence that a single m-D or A-D power law is often not valid over all ice particle sizes, few studies have addressed this fact. This study develops self-consistent m-D and A-D expressions that are not power laws but can easily be reduced to power laws for the ice particle size (maximum dimension or D) range of interest, and they are valid over a much larger D range than power laws. This was done by combining ground measurements of individual ice particle m and D formed at temperature T < –20 °C during a cloud seeding field campaign with 2-D stereo (2D-S) and cloud particle imager (CPI) probe measurements of D and A, and estimates of m, in synoptic and anvil ice clouds at similar temperatures. The resulting m-D and A-D expressions are functions of temperature and cloud type (synoptic vs. anvil), and are in good agreement with m-D power laws developed from recent field studies considering the same temperature range (–60 °C < T < –20 °C).

Research Organization:
Desert Research Inst. (DRI), Reno, NV (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
OSTI ID:
1258751
Journal Information:
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (Online), Vol. 16, Issue 7; ISSN 1680-7324
Publisher:
European Geosciences UnionCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 23 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (8)

New Cloud System Metrics to Assess Bulk Ice Cloud Schemes in a GCM journal October 2019
A microphysics guide to cirrus clouds – Part 1: Cirrus types journal January 2016
The origin of midlatitude ice clouds and the resulting influence on their microphysical properties journal January 2016
Growth of ice particle mass and projected area during riming journal January 2017
CALIPSO (IIR–CALIOP) retrievals of cirrus cloud ice-particle concentrations journal January 2018
A novel approach for characterizing the variability in mass–dimension relationships: results from MC3E journal January 2019
Ice particle sampling from aircraft – influence of the probing position on the ice water content journal January 2018
Ice crystal number concentration estimates from lidar–radar satellite remote sensing – Part 1: Method and evaluation journal January 2018

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