NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Shallow cloud decks residing in or near the boundary layer cover a large fraction of the Southern Ocean (SO) and play a major role in determining the amount of shortwave radiation reflected back to space from this region. In this article, we examine the macrophysical characteristics and thermodynamic phase of low clouds (tops <3 km) and precipitation using ground-based ceilometer, depolarization lidar and vertically-pointing W-band radar measurements collected during the Macquarie Island Cloud and Radiation Experiment (MICRE) from April 2016 to March 2017. During MICRE, low clouds occurred ∼65% of the time on average (slightly more often in austral winter than summer). About 2/3 of low clouds were cold-topped (temperatures ≤0°C). These were thicker and had higher bases on average than warm-topped clouds. 83%–88% of cold-topped low clouds were liquid phase at cloud base (depending on the season). The majority of low clouds had precipitation in the vertical range 150–250 m below cloud base, a significant fraction of which did not reach the surface. Phase characterization is limited to the period between April 2016 and November 2016. Small-particle (low-radar-reflectivity) precipitation (which dominates precipitation occurrence) was mostly liquid below-cloud, while large-particle precipitation (which dominates total accumulation) was predominantly mixed/ambiguous or ice phase. Approximately 40% of cold-topped clouds had mixed/ambiguous or ice phase precipitation below (with predominantly liquid phase cloud droplets at cloud base). Below-cloud precipitation with radar reflectivity factors below about −10 dBZ were predominantly liquid, while reflectivity factors above about 0 dBZ were predominantly ice. Plain Language Summary The Southern Ocean is covered by low altitude cloud decks the majority of the time. Properties like cloud occurrence frequency, particle phase and precipitation habits determine how much solar radiation clouds reflect and how much infrared radiation they emit, which in turn affects the balance of the planet's incoming and outgoing radiation. In this paper, we examine low cloud properties observed from the ground at Macquarie Island, including how frequently they occur and at what temperatures. We study particle thermodynamic phase (liquid, ice or mixed) at cloud base and in precipitation below-cloud. A majority of low clouds are predominantly composed of liquid phase droplets, although frozen precipitation is frequently found below cloud base. Low clouds form precipitation more often than not, much of which evaporates before reaching the ground. In below-freezing low clouds, the majority of large raindrops & snowflakes that do reach the ground originate as frozen precipitation directly below cloud base. This indicates that ice formation is frequently active in clouds composed predominantly of liquid-phase droplets. Lastly, we build upon an established radar-lidar relationship that particles with radar reflectivity factors below −10 dBZ are generally liquid, whereas above 0 dBZ are most often ice phase.