Observed and Bin Model Simulated Evolution of Drop Size Distributions in High‐Based Cumulus Congestus Over the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

AbstractThis study examines microphysical processes in developing high‐based cumulus congestus over the United Arab Emirates using aircraft observations and a large‐eddy‐simulation model with bin microphysics. A notable feature of this case is the lack of mm‐sized drops despite having a liquid cloud layer km deep, contrasting with copious large drops observed in maritime tropical cumulus congestus having a similar vertical extent. Modeled drop size distributions are similar to observations at various temperatures between 9.5 and −12°C, including the lack of mm‐sized drops. Cloud dilution leads to low‐to‐moderate liquid water contents (∼0.5–1.5 g m−3) in most of the cloud core, several times smaller than adiabatic values. Dilution is enhanced in the inflowing branch of the toroidal circulations associated with individual cloud thermals, which are favored regions for secondary droplet activation (activation above cloud base). Secondary activation in general contributes substantially to the droplet population. Turning it off leads to a sharp decrease in droplet concentration and increase in mean size aloft, but does little to increase rain drop production. Warm rain generation (or lack thereof) in this case is therefore determined more by the sub‐cloud aerosol and the cloud base droplet size distribution (DSD) than DSD evolution aloft from secondary droplet activation. Decreasing the aerosol concentration by a factor of 10 greatly increases production of large drops via collision‐coalescence. Thus, despite its high base (low temperatures) and substantial dilution, the simulated cloud is thermodynamically and dynamically capable of rapidly producing copious mm‐sized drops from collision‐coalescence under pristine aerosol conditions.