Carbon dioxide and climate: The effects of water transport in radiative‐convective models

Abstract

Considerable attention is being focused on the possible climatic effects resulting from increases in the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide. In calculating CO2 influence on the thermal structure of the atmosphere, the role of clouds is critically important. Not only are the cloud properties, such as amount, numbers of clouds, altitudes, and optical properties important but also whether or not these properties are fixed or coupled to model temperatures. The transport of water vapor determines whether or not a region has clouds, the cloud properites, and the water vapor profiles appropriate for clear and cloudy skies. Results are presented of the change in surface temperature with changes in carbon dioxide content for two radiative‐convective models with three different cloud coverages. We used (1) the Manabe‐Wetherald radiative‐convective model in which three clouds with fixed pressures, thicknesses, and optical properties and a single water vapor profile are inputed and (2) the Hummel‐Kuhn model, which couples radiative heating, convection, and water vapor transport in order to calculate locations and thicknesses. The Hummel‐Kuhn model yields temperature increases for doubled CO2 larger than the Manabe‐Wetherald model for various assumed total cloud cover amounts. For assumed standard cloud cover amounts the Hummel‐Kuhn estimate is 20% larger than the Manabe‐Wetherald estimate. For reduced and enhanced cloud cover amounts the Hummel‐Kuhn estimates are 37% and 17% larger, respectively. The calculated cloud locations and thicknesses did not change in the calculations; therefore the increased sensitivity in the Hummel‐Kuhn model is due to the larger water vapor amounts in the Hummel‐Kuhn model and the added infrared absorption by the water vapor dimer.