Publication Date
13 July 2016
Thermodynamic Control of Anvil-Cloud Amount
Science
Assessing the response of clouds to global warming remains a challenge of climate science. Past research has elucidated what controls the height and temperature of high-level anvil clouds, but the factors that control their horizontal extent remained uncertain.
Impact
We show that the anvil cloud amount is expected to shrink as the climate warms or when convection becomes more clustered, due to a mechanism rooted in basic energetic and thermodynamic properties of the atmosphere. It is supported by three climate models and consistent with results from a cloud-resolving model and observations.
Summary
We thus believe that this mechanism is robust and that it adds a new piece to understanding how clouds respond to climate warming.
Point of Contact
Brian Medeiros
Institution(s)
National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
Funding Program Area(s)
Publication
“Thermodynamic Control Of Anvil-Cloud Amount”. 2016. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences. doi:10.1073/pnas.1601472113.