HR: 1340h
AN: A53D-1443    [Abstracts]
TI: Validation of Microphysical Schemes in a CRM Using TRMM Satellite
AU: * Li, X
EM: xli@agnes.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: GEST center, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 5523 Research Park Drive, Suite 320, Baltimore, MD 21228, United States
AU: * Li, X
EM: xli@agnes.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Goddar Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
AU: Tao, W
EM: tao@agnes.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Goddar Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
AU: Matsui, T
EM: matsui@agnes.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: GEST center, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 5523 Research Park Drive, Suite 320, Baltimore, MD 21228, United States
AU: Matsui, T
EM: matsui@agnes.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Goddar Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
AU: Liu, C
EM: liu.c.t@utah.edu
AF: University of Utah, Department of Meteorology, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, United States
AU: Masunaga, H
EM: masunaga@hyarc.nagoya-u.ac.jp
AF: Nagoya University, Hydrospheric Atmospheric Research Center, Furocho Chijusaku, Nag 464-8601, Japan
AB: The microphysical scheme in the Goddard Cumulus Ensemble (GCE) model has been the most heavily developed component in the past decade. The cloud-resolving model now has microphysical schemes ranging from the original Lin type bulk scheme, to improved bulk schemes, to a two-moment scheme, to a detailed bin spectral scheme. Even with the most sophisticated bin scheme, many uncertainties still exist, especially in ice phase microphysics. In this study, we take advantages of the long-term TRMM observations, especially the cloud profiles observed by the precipitation radar (PR), to validate microphysical schemes in the simulations of Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCSs). Two contrasting cases, a midlatitude summertime continental MCS with leading convection and trailing stratiform region, and an oceanic MCS in tropical western Pacific are studied. The simulated cloud structures and particle sizes are fed into a forward radiative transfer model to simulate the TRMM satellite sensors, i.e., the PR, the TRMM microwave imager (TMI) and the visible and infrared scanner (VIRS). MCS cases that match the structure and strength of the simulated systems over the 10-year period are used to construct statistics of different sensors. These statistics are then compared with the synthetic satellite data obtained from the forward radiative transfer calculations. It is found that the GCE model simulates the contrasts between the continental and oceanic case reasonably well, with less ice scattering in the oceanic case comparing with the continental case. However, the simulated ice scattering signals for both PR and TMI are generally stronger than the observations, especially for the bulk scheme and at the upper levels in the stratiform region. This indicates larger, denser snow/graupel particles at these levels. Adjusting microphysical schemes in the GCE model according the observations, especially the 3D cloud structure observed by TRMM PR, result in a much better agreement.
DE: 0320 Cloud physics and chemistry
SC: Atmospheric Sciences [A]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting