Document Type
Data
Publication Date
1-3-2025
Award Number
DE-SC0022128 and AGS-2113060
Abstract
Aerosol particles play a pivotal role in shaping clouds, precipitation, and climate. However, it still remains one of the significant uncertainties in climate change. While most aerosols are activated at the cloud base, the aerosol particles entrained from the cloud top or edges can also contribute to droplet formation above the base. This process might significantly impact cloud properties and lifetimes.
In this study, we investigate how entraining aerosol-laden air affects cloud microphysics by adding aerosol particles to the dry-air inflow in the Pi chamber experiments. The findings show that the cloud droplet number concentration and liquid water content increase substantially when the entrained air contains aerosol particles. Such an increase in L can be interpreted as a reduction in droplet sedimentation loss due to the presence of smaller droplets. The droplet size distribution (DSD) shifts toward smaller droplet sizes, and its width narrows more than the average droplet size, causing a decrease in relative dispersion (spectral narrowing). Moreover, the increased aerosol concentration in the entrained air diminishes the effective droplet radius, enhancing the cloud’s optical thickness and albedo—ultimately making the cloud appear brighter.
These results are particularly relevant to the entrainment interface at the top of stratocumulus clouds, where modeling studies suggest that sedimentation strongly influences L. Consequently, these results shed light on the implications of entraining aerosol-laden air for cloud formation, precipitation processes, and the broader climate system.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Cantrell, W.,
Yeom, J.,
Sadi, H. F.,
Anderson, J.,
Yang, F.,
&
Shaw, R.
(2025).
Data Supporting "Cloud Microphysical Response to Entrainment of Dry Air Containing Aerosols".
http://doi.org/10.37099/mtu.dc.all-datasets/56
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/all-datasets/56
