The Impacts of Immersion Ice Nucleation Parameterizations on Arctic Mixed-Phase Stratiform Cloud Properties and the Arctic Radiation Budget in GEOS-5

The influence of four different immersion freezing parameterizations on Arctic clouds and the top-ofthe atmosphere (TOA) and surface radiation fluxes is investigated in the fifth version of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS-5) with sea surface temperature, sea ice fraction, and aerosol emissions held fixed. The different parameterizations were derived from a variety of sources, including classical nucleation theory and field and laboratory measurements. Despite the large spread in the ice-nucleating particle (INP) concentrations in the parameterizations, the cloud properties and radiative fluxes had a tendency to form two groups, with the lower INP concentration category producing larger water path and low-level cloud fraction during winter and early spring, whereas the opposite occurred during the summer season. The stability of the lower troposphere was found to strongly correlate with low-cloud fraction and, along with the effect of ice nucleation, ice sedimentation, and melting rates, appears to explain the spring-to-summer reversal pattern in the relative magnitude of the cloud properties between the two categories of simulations. The strong modulation effect of the liquid phase on immersion freezing led to the successful simulation of the characteristic Arctic cloud structure, with a layer rich in supercooled water near cloud top and ice and snow at lower levels. Comparison with satellite retrievals and in situ data suggest that simulations with low INP concentrations more realistically represent Arctic clouds and radiation.

Automated summary

The study investigates the impact of four different immersion freezing parameterizations on Arctic clouds and radiation fluxes. Despite variations in ice-nucleating particle (INP) concentrations, the cloud properties and radiative fluxes tend to fall into two categories, with lower INP concentrations resulting in greater water path and low-level cloud fraction during winter and early spring, while the opposite holds true during the summer. The stability of the lower troposphere is strongly correlated with low-cloud fraction and, combined with ice nucleation, sedimentation, and melting rates, appears to explain the seasonal reversal pattern in cloud properties between the two simulation categories.