Interactions of the Cloudy Arctic Boundary Layer with Variable Surface Conditions and Large-Scale Circulations

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Research supported by this grant is under the auspices of the Arctic Systems Science (ARCSS) Global Change Research Program and is jointly sponsored by the Division of Ocean Sciences and the Office of Polar Programs. Work to be performed represents preliminary steps towards a major 5-year research project named SHEBA, which is envisioned to study the heat budget of the Arctic Ocean and its impact on global change. The primary goals of SHEBA are: (1) to develop, test and implement models of arctic ocean- atmosphere-ice processes that demonstrably improve simulations of the present day arctic climate, including its variability, using General Circulation Models (GCMs), and (2) to improve the interpre- tation of satellite remote sensing data in the Arctic for analysis of the arctic climate system and provide reliable data for model input, model validation and climate monitoring. Researchers at Colorado State University will improve computer simulations of the effect of Stratus clouds on the surface heat budget of the Arctic. The fraction of open water, ice thickness, and snow cover/thickness, and melt pond cover/thickness will be used to look at the effect of these parameters on cloud formation. The improvement of the cloud component simulations in Arctic climate models is essential to improving the accuracy of global climate models used to examine possible greenhouse effects on global climates. ??