Impacts of the stochastic multicloud parameterization on the simulation of Western North Pacific summer rainfall

Abstract

This study investigated the sensitivity of the western North Pacific (WNP) summer precipitation to the convection schemes and discussed the associated dynamical processes. Two convection schemes were compared: one is the default mass-flux convection scheme used in the state-of-the-art ECHAM6.3 atmosphere model and the other incorporates the Stochastic Multicloud Model (SMCM) into ECHAM6.3. Incorporation of the SMCM reduces the bias of cloud cover and shortwave and longwave radiation by regulating the shortwave and longwave cloud radiative forcing over the WNP. Compared to the default model, the modified model with the SMCM alleviates the dry bias in the WNP, which is associated with enhanced ascending motion. The moist static energy balance revealed that improved simulation of precipitation in the modified model is contributed by enhanced horizontal advection of moist enthalpy and increased net energy in the atmosphere, which is attributed to increased total cloud cover, over the WNP. Additionally, intensified latent energy advection over the WNP dominates enhanced horizontal advection of moist enthalpy in the modified model. On the other hand, the moisture budget analysis of the WNP demonstrated that strengthened convergence of moisture flux in the modified model plays the most influential role in reducing precipitation bias. Further analysis unraveled that enhanced zonal-mean moisture transported by the stationary eddy zonal flow convergence in the WNP dominates intensified zonal moisture convergence, thus increased horizontal convergence of moist flux in the modified model.