Dehydration potential of ultrathin clouds at the tropical tropopause
Anno: 2003
Autori: Luo B. P., Peter T., Fueglistaler S., Wernli H., Wirth M., Kiemle C., Flentje H., Yushkov V. A., Khattatov V., Rudakov V., Thomas A.; Borrmann S., Toci G., Mazzinghi P., Beuermann J., Schiller C., Cairo F., Di Donfrancesco G., Adriani A., Volk C. M., Strom J., Noone K., Mitev V., MacKenzie R. A., Carslaw K. S., Trautmann T., Santacesaria V., Stefanutti L.
Affiliazione autori: Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Switzerland; Institute for Atmospheric Physics, Deutches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany; Central Aerological Observatory, Moscow, Russia; Institute for Atmospheric Physics, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany; Quantum Electronics Institute, Istituto di Elettronica Quantistica, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Florence, Italy; National Institute of Applied Optics, Florence, Italy; Institute I: Stratosphere, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany; Istituto di Fisica dell\’Atmosfera, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Rome, Italy; Ente per le Nuove Tecnologie, l\’Energia e l\’Ambiente-Casaccia, Rome, Italy; Institut für Meteorologie und Geophysik, University of Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany;
Institute of Applied Environmental Research, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Meteorology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden; Observatoire Cantonal, Neuchâtel, Switzerland; Environmental Science Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK; School of the Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK; Institute of Meteorology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany; Istituto di Ricerca Onde Elettromagnetiche, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche “Nello Carrara”, Firenze, Italy
Abstract: We report on the first simultaneous in situ and remote measurements of subvisible cirrus in the uppermost tropical troposphere. The observed cirrus, called UTTCs (ultrathin tropical tropopause clouds), are the geometrically (200-300 m) and optically (t ˜ 10-4) thinnest large-scale clouds ever sampled (˜105 km2). UTTCs consist of only a few ice particles per liter with mean radius ˜5 µm, containing only 1-5 % of the total water. Yet, brief adiabatic cooling events only 1-2 K below mean ambient temperature destabilize UTTCs, leading to large sedimenting particles (r ˜ 25 µm). Due to their extreme altitude above 17 km and low particle number density, UTTCs may efficiently dehydrate air during its last encounter with the ice phase before entering the stratosphere.
Giornale/Rivista: GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
Volume: 30 (11) Da Pagina: 1557 A: 1557
Parole chiavi: Clouds; Dehydration; Ice; Sediments; Troposphere; Upper atmosphere, Ultrathin clouds, Geophysics, cirrus; cloud; cloud microphysics; dehydration; ice; tropopauseDOI: 10.1029/2002GL016737Citazioni: 47dati da “WEB OF SCIENCE” (of Thomson Reuters) aggiornati al: 2024-05-05Riferimenti tratti da Isi Web of Knowledge: (solo abbonati) Link per visualizzare la scheda su IsiWeb: Clicca quiLink per visualizzare la citazioni su IsiWeb: Clicca qui