Key drivers of cloud response to surface-active organics
| Autor: | Daniel G. Partridge, David Topping, Kevin R. Wilson, Ilona Riipinen, Samuel Lowe, James F. Davies |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | Tampere University, Physics |
| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
Atmospheric chemistry
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Particle number Science General Physics and Astronomy Cloud computing 010501 environmental sciences Atmospheric sciences 114 Physical sciences 01 natural sciences Article General Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular Biology Surface tension Radiative transfer lcsh:Science Astrophysics::Galaxy Astrophysics Physics::Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics 0105 earth and related environmental sciences Atmospheric dynamics Multidisciplinary business.industry General Chemistry Radiative forcing Aerosol Climate Action Environmental science lcsh:Q Climate model business Shortwave |
| Zdroj: | Nature communications, vol 10, iss 1 Nature Communications, Vol 10, Iss 1, Pp 1-12 (2019) Nature Communications |
| ISSN: | 2041-1723 |
| DOI: | 10.1038/s41467-019-12982-0 |
| Popis: | Aerosol-cloud interactions constitute the largest source of uncertainty in global radiative forcing estimates, hampering our understanding of climate evolution. Recent empirical evidence suggests surface tension depression by organic aerosol to significantly influence the formation of cloud droplets, and hence cloud optical properties. In climate models, however, surface tension of water is generally assumed when predicting cloud droplet concentrations. Here we show that the sensitivity of cloud microphysics, optical properties and shortwave radiative effects to the surface phase are dictated by an interplay between the aerosol particle size distribution, composition, water availability and atmospheric dynamics. We demonstrate that accounting for the surface phase becomes essential in clean environments in which ultrafine particle sources are present. Through detailed sensitivity analysis, quantitative constraints on the key drivers – aerosol particle number concentrations, organic fraction and fixed updraft velocity – are derived for instances of significant cloud microphysical susceptibilities to the surface phase. Aerosol-cloud interactions are a large source of uncertainty in radiative forcing estimates. Here, the authors show that the radiative effects of clouds are influenced by a combination of aerosol particle distribution, environmental conditions and atmosphere dynamics. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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