RICO - Continuing Research

2004年11月至2005年1月，首席调查员和同事在加勒比海安提瓜和巴布达群岛附近的西大西洋东北信风区域开展了Cumulus Over the Ocean(RICO)实地活动。RICO的目标是在所有尺度上描述和了解信风积云的特性，特别是对降水的重视。热带浅对流降水具有改变海洋边界层动力学和云组织、改变气溶胶分布及相关的直接和间接气候效应、调节进入热带辐合带的热量和水汽输送从而影响Hadley环流的潜力，已成为研究的重点。这项研究的首要目标是了解浅层热带对流中降水是如何形成的，以及降水对信风云组织和海洋边界层的热、湿和气溶胶特性的影响。在这个新的项目中，将继续研究推动RICO的信风云和降水的悬而未决的科学问题。科学方法包括对RICO期间收集的数据进行分析，并进行数值建模研究，以检验从早期数据分析中得出的假设。随着涉及卫星数据的新研究的增加，这项研究跨越了与贸易风云相关的所有尺度，并解决了RICO的许多关键科学目标。具体目标是量化和理解(1)影响信风积云降水形成速率的微物理和环境过程，(2)降水影响信风云中尺度组织的机制，(3)云和降水影响海洋边界层中尺度亚结构的机制，以及(4)云和云处理对海洋边界层内气溶胶分布的影响。这项研究的智力价值在于促进了对信风区云、气溶胶和降水特征及其演变机制的认识和理解。这些问题对于理解贸易风云在气候系统中的作用至关重要。这项研究的更广泛影响将是巨大的。它将通过提供能够与模式直接比较的数据分析，为全球建立贸易风云模型的努力做出贡献。它将导致对贸易风云系统的新理解和发现，这几乎肯定会转化为对气候和气候变化以及热带天气预报的理解的改善。该项目在本科生研究经验计划下为研究生和本科生提供培训。研究生团队将与校园内外的研究科学家网络合作。

The Rain in Cumulus over the Ocean (RICO) field campaign was carried out by the Principal Investigators and colleagues within the northeast trade winds of the western Atlantic near the Caribbean Islands of Antigua and Barbuda from November 2004 to January 2005. The objective of RICO was to characterize and understand the properties of trade wind cumulus at all scales, with particular emphasis on precipitation. Precipitation from shallow tropical convection has become a focus of investigation because of its potential to alter marine boundary layer dynamics and cloud organization, modify aerosol distributions and associated direct and indirect climatic effects, and regulate heat and moisture transported into the intertropical convergence zone, which influences the Hadley circulation. Understanding how precipitation forms within shallow tropical convection, and the effects precipitation has on trade wind cloud organization and the thermal, moisture and aerosol properties of the marine boundary layer are the overarching goals of this research.In this new project, research will continue on the outstanding scientific questions regarding trade wind clouds and precipitation that motivated RICO. The scientific approach involves analyses of data collected during RICO, and numerical modeling studies, to test hypotheses developed from earlier data analyses. With the addition of new research involving satellite data, the research crosses all scales relevant to trade wind clouds and addresses many of the key scientific objectives of RICO. The specific goals are to quantify and understand (1) the microphysical and environmental processes influencing the rate of precipitation formation in trade wind cumuli, (2) the mechanisms by which precipitation influences the mesoscale organization of trade wind clouds, (3) the mechanisms by which clouds and precipitation influence the mesoscale substructure of the marine boundary layer, and (4) the impact of clouds and cloud processing on the distribution of aerosols within the marine boundary layer.The intellectual merit of this research is the advancement of knowledge and understanding of cloud, aerosol, and precipitation characteristics in the trade wind region, and the mechanisms that govern their evolution. These problems are central to understanding the role of trade wind clouds in the climate system. The broader impacts of the research will be substantial. It will contribute to the global effort to model trade wind clouds by providing data analyses that will allow direct comparison with models. It will lead to new understanding and discoveries about trade wind cloud systems that will almost certainly translate into improvements in understanding of climate and climate change, as well as tropical weather forecasting. The project provides training for graduate students as well as undergraduate students under the Research Experiences for Undergraduates program. The team of graduate students will collaborate with a network of research scientists on and beyond their campus.