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Updated: Oct 27, 2025
13:27
Exploring the Effects of Atmospheric Forcings on Evaporation: Experimental Integration of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Shallow Subsurface
Published on: June 8, 2015
8.9K
Observational evidence that cloud feedback amplifies global warming
Paulo Ceppi1,2, Peer Nowack3,2,4,5
1Grantham Institute, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom; p.ceppi@imperial.ac.uk.
Summary
Global warming
Area of Science:
- Climate science
- Earth system science
- Atmospheric physics
Background:
- Global warming alters Earth's cloud cover, influencing climate feedback loops.
- Cloud feedback is the primary source of uncertainty in Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity (ECS).
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze cloud response to environmental changes using statistical learning.
- To constrain global cloud feedback and its impact on climate sensitivity.
Main Methods:
- Statistical learning analysis of Earth observation and climate model data.
- Focusing on cloud sensitivity to surface temperature and tropospheric stability.
Main Results:
- Global cloud feedback is primarily driven by surface temperature and tropospheric stability.
- Constrained global cloud feedback: 0.43 ± 0.35 W⋅m⁻²⋅K⁻¹ (90% confidence).
- A robustly amplifying effect of clouds on global warming is indicated.
Conclusions:
- Low probability (0.5%) of Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity below 2 K.
- The approach offers tighter constraints for climate change projections and impact assessments.
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