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The Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Aerosol-Cloud Interactions (WRF-ACI): Development, Evaluation, and
Timothy Glotfelty1, Kiran Alapaty1, Jian He1
1National Exposure Research Laboratory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, USA.
The Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Aerosol-Cloud Interactions (WRF-ACI) enhances cloud simulations by improving liquid and ice water path predictions. Aerosols significantly impact cloud lifetime and radiative forcing, offering a valuable tool for climate research.
Area of Science:
- Atmospheric Science
- Climate Modeling
- Aerosol Science
Background:
- Aerosols significantly influence cloud properties and climate.
- Accurate simulation of aerosol-cloud interactions is crucial for climate modeling.
- Previous models lacked comprehensive aerosol-cloud interaction parameterizations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce and evaluate the Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Aerosol-Cloud Interactions (WRF-ACI).
- To investigate the effects of aerosols on grid-scale and subgrid-scale clouds.
- To quantify aerosol indirect effects on cloud properties and radiative forcing.
Main Methods:
- Utilized common aerosol activation and ice nucleation formulations.
- Implemented double-moment cloud microphysics within a scale-aware subgrid-scale parameterization scheme.
- Compared WRF-ACI simulations against satellite and reanalysis data for a summer season.
Main Results:
- WRF-ACI improved simulations of cloud liquid and ice water paths.
- Current aerosols increased cloud liquid water path and reduced precipitation (cloud lifetime effect).
- Aerosol-cloud interactions led to increased shortwave cloud forcing (~3.0 W m-2).
Conclusions:
- WRF-ACI provides a computationally efficient tool for studying aerosol-cloud interactions.
- Aerosol indirect effects are sensitive to microphysics parameterizations.
- Cloud lifetime effects dominate over thermodynamic invigoration impacts on precipitation.
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