Aerosol-cloud interactions in ship tracks using Terra MODIS/MISR

Simultaneous ship track observations from Terra Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) have been compiled to investigate how ship-injected aerosols affect marine warm boundary layer clouds for different cloud types and environmental conditions. By taking advantage of the high spatial resolution multiangle observations available from MISR, we utilized the retrieved cloud albedo, cloud top height, and cloud motion vectors to examine cloud property responses in ship-polluted and nearby unpolluted clouds. The strength of the cloud albedo response to increased aerosol level is primarily dependent on cloud cell structure, dryness of the free troposphere, and boundary layer depth, corroborating a previous study by Chen et al. (2012) where A-Train satellite data were utilized. Under open cell cloud structure the cloud properties are more susceptible to aerosol perturbations as compared to closed cells. Aerosol plumes caused an increase in liquid water amount (+38%), cloud top height (+13%), and cloud albedo (+49%) for open cell clouds, whereas for closed cell clouds, little change in cloud properties was observed. Further capitalizing on MISR's unique capabilities, the MISR cross-track cloud speed was used to derive cloud top divergence. Statistically averaging the results from the identified plume segments to reduce random noise, we found evidence of cloud top divergence in the ship-polluted clouds, whereas the nearby unpolluted clouds showed cloud top convergence, providing observational evidence of a change in local mesoscale circulation associated with enhanced aerosols. Furthermore, open cell polluted clouds revealed stronger cloud top divergence as compared to closed cell clouds, consistent with different dynamical mechanisms driving their responses. These results suggest that detailed cloud responses, classified by cloud type and environmental conditions, must be accounted for in global climate modeling studies to reduce uncertainties in calculations of aerosol indirect forcing. Key Points