The effect of physical and chemical aerosol properties on warm cloud droplet activation

The effects of atmospheric aerosol on climate forcing may be very substantial but are quantified poorly at present; in particular, the effects of aerosols on cloud radiative properties, or the "indirect effects" are credited with the greatest range of uncertainty amongst the known causes of radiative forcing. This manuscript explores the effects that the composition and properties of atmospheric aerosol can have on the activation of droplets in warm clouds, so potentially influencing the magnitude of the indirect effect. The effects of size, composition, mixing state and various derived properties are assessed and a range of these properties provided by atmospheric measurements in a variety of locations is briefly reviewed. The suitability of a range of process-level descriptions to capture these aerosol effects is investigated by assessment of their sensitivities to uncertainties in aerosol properties and by their performance in closure studies. The treatment of these effects within global models is reviewed and suggestions for future investigations are made.

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Subject (DDC)

550 - Geowissenschaften

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ISBN

ISSN

1680-7324
1680-7316

Language

English

Created during FHNW affiliation

No

Strategic action fields FHNW

Publication status

Published

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Peer review of the complete publication

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Gold

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Citation

McFiggans, G. B., Artaxo, P., Baltensperger, U., Coe, H., Facchini, M. C., Feingold, G., Fuzzi, S., Gysel, M., Laaksonen, A., Lohmann, U., Mentel, T. F., Murphy, D. M., O’Dowd, C. D., Snider, J. R., & Weingartner, E. (2006). The effect of physical and chemical aerosol properties on warm cloud droplet activation. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 6(9), 2593–2649. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-6-2593-2006

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