Modeling Dust Direct Radiative Feedbacks in East Asia During the Last Glacial Maximum

Xugeng Cheng,Xiaodong Liu,Xiaoning Xie,Tianliang Zhao,Zhengguo Shi,Xinzhou Li

doi:10.3390/atmos10030146

Abstract

In this study, using the fourth version of the Community Atmosphere Model (CAM4) with a bulk aerosol model parameterization (BAM) for dust size distribution (CAM4-BAM), East Asian dust and its direct radiative feedbacks (DRF) during the Last Glacial Maximum are analyzed by intercomparing results between the experiments with (Active) and without (Passive) the DRF. This CAM4-BAM captures the expected characteristics that the dust aerosol optical depth and loading over East Asia during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) were significantly greater compared to the current climate. A comparative analysis of the Active and Passive experiments reveals that consideration of the dust–radiation interaction can significantly reduce dust emissions and then weaken the whole dust cycle, including loading, transport, and dry and wet depositions over East Asia. Further analysis of the dust–radiation feedback shows that the DRF decreases surface sensible heat, mainly owing to the negative surface forcing induced by dust with a value of −11.8 W m−2. The decreased surface sensible heat weakens the turbulent energy within the planetary boundary layer and the surface wind speed, and then reduces the regional dust emissions. This process creates a negative DRF–emission feedback loop to affect the dust cycle during the LGM. Further analysis reveals that the dust emissions in the LGM over East Asia were more reduced, with amounts of −77.2 Tg season−1 by the negative DRF–emission feedback, compared to the current climate with −6.8 Tg season−1. The two ratios of this reduction to their emissions are close to −10.7% for the LGM and −7.5% for the current climate.

Highlights

Atmospheric dust has widespread impacts on climate, atmospheric chemistry, biogeochemical cycles, and human health, and has attracted a lot of attention
The values of emission, loading, and aerosol optical depth (AOD) simulated in our work have little difference from those of Albani et al [31], and the emission and loading are of the same order of magnitude as the results of Takemura et al [29]
The two numerical experiments were completed and intercompared without the dust direct radiative effects (DRF) for Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and PD, respectively. Their differences were with and without the dust direct radiative effects (DRF) for LGM and PD, respectively. Their used to study the radiative feedbacks of dust aerosols over East Asia during these two periods

Summary

Introduction

Atmospheric dust has widespread impacts on climate, atmospheric chemistry, biogeochemical cycles, and human health, and has attracted a lot of attention. It can alter the Earth’s radiation balance via scattering and absorbing radiation in the atmosphere, act as nuclei for cloud formation, and fertilize ecosystems upon deposition [1,2,3]. Changes in dust loading could yield a substantial radiative forcing of the climate system and influence cycles of atmospheric components, such as water vapor [4,5] and CO2 [6,7], as well as itself [8,9]. Dust in the atmosphere can directly absorb and scatter thermal (longwave, LW) and solar (shortwave, SW) radiation, known as dust direct radiative forcing (DRF).

Methods

Results

Conclusion