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Effects of doubled carbon dioxide on rainfall responses to radiative processes of water clouds

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Abstract

The effects of doubled carbon dioxide on rainfall responses to radiative processes of water clouds are investigated in this study. Two groups of two-dimensional cloud-resolving model sensitivity experiments with regard to pre-summer heavy rainfall around the summer solstice and tropical rainfall around the winter solstice are conducted and their five-day averages over the model domain are analyzed. In the presence of radiative effects of ice clouds, doubled carbon dioxide changes pre-summer rainfall from the decrease associated with the enhanced atmospheric cooling to the increase associated with the enhanced infrared cooling as a result of the exclusion of radiative effects of water clouds. Doubled carbon dioxide leads to the reduction in tropical rainfall, caused by the removal of radiative effects of water clouds through the suppressed infrared cooling. In the absence of radiative effects of ice clouds, doubled carbon dioxide changes pre-summer rainfall from the increase associated with the strengthened atmospheric warming to the decrease associated with the weakened release of latent heat caused by the elimination of radiative effects of water clouds. The exclusion of radiative effects of water clouds increases tropical rainfall through the strengthened infrared cooling, which is insensitive to the change in carbon dioxide.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China

    Xiaofan Li  (李小凡), Tingting Li  (李婷婷) & Lingyun Lou  (楼凌云)

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  1. Xiaofan Li  (李小凡)
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  2. Tingting Li  (李婷婷)
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  3. Lingyun Lou  (楼凌云)
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Correspondence to Xiaofan Li  (李小凡).

Additional information

Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41475039) and National Key Basic Research and Development (973) Program of China (2015CB953601).

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Li, X., Li, T. & Lou, L. Effects of doubled carbon dioxide on rainfall responses to radiative processes of water clouds. J Meteorol Res 28, 1114–1126 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13351-014-4043-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13351-014-4043-1

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