Evaluation of Summer Monsoon Clouds over the Tibetan Plateau Simulated in the ACCESS Model Using Satellite Products

Cloud distribution characteristics over the Tibetan Plateau in the summer monsoon period simulated by the Australian Community Climate and Earth System Simulator(ACCESS) model are evaluated using COSP [the CFMIP(Cloud Feedback Model Intercomparison Project) Observation Simulator Package]. The results show that the ACCESS model simulates less cumulus cloud at atmospheric middle levels when compared with observations from CALIPSO and CloudSat, but more ice cloud at high levels and drizzle drops at low levels. The model also has seasonal biases after the onset of the summer monsoon in May. While observations show that the prevalent high cloud at 9–10 km in spring shifts downward to 7–9 km,the modeled maximum cloud fractions move upward to 12–15 km. The reason for this model deficiency is investigated by comparing model dynamical and thermodynamical fields with those of ERA-Interim. It is found that the lifting effect of the Tibetan Plateau in the ACCESS model is stronger than in ERA-Interim, which means that the vertical velocity in the ACCESS model is stronger and more water vapor is transported to the upper levels of the atmosphere, resulting in more high-level ice clouds and less middle-level cumulus cloud over the Tibetan Plateau. The modeled radiation fields and precipitation are also evaluated against the relevant satellite observations.     

Preliminary Evaluation of Cloud Fraction Simulations by GAMIL2 Using COSP

The Cloud Feedback Model Intercomparisons Project (CFMIP) Observation Simulator Package (COSP) is adopted in the Grid-point Atmospheric Model of IAP LASG (GAMIL2) during CFMIP at Phase II to evaluate the model cloud fractions in a consistent way with satellite observations. The cloud simulation results embedded in the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP) control experiment are presented using three satellite simulators: International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP), Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) lidar onboard the Cloud- Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO). Overall, GAMIL2 can produce horizontal distributions of the low cloud fraction that are similar to the satellite observations, and its similarities to the observations on different levels are shown in Taylor diagrams. The discrepancies among satellite observations are also shown, which should be considered during evaluation.