T. Reisin et al., SEEDING CONVECTIVE CLOUDS WITH ICE NUCLEI OR HYGROSCOPIC PARTICLES - A NUMERICAL STUDY USING A MODEL WITH DETAILED MICROPHYSICS, Journal of applied meteorology, 35(9), 1996, pp. 1416-1434
Simulations of seeding clouds for rain enhancement with ice nuclei (IN
) or hygroscopic particles were conducted using a numerical model of a
n axisymmetric convective cloud with detailed treatment of both warm a
nd cold microphysical processes. The simulations were performed for th
ree clouds that differed in their cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) conc
entrations and spectra. Tests were carried out on clouds characterized
as maritime (100 CCN cm(-3)), moderate continental (600 CCN cm(-3)),
and extreme continental (1100 CCN cm(-3)) using two different initial
conditions in which cloud tops reached -20 degrees and -12 degrees C.
The seeding time was found to be a critical parameter for obtaining po
sitive results. The optimal ''time window'' for IN seeding was found t
o be very short and to correspond to the time at which the natural ice
began to form. Seeding after this time reduced the rain. The optimal
concentration of seeding material was about 75-125 L(-1). In the marit
ime clouds rain formation processes were very efficient, and seeding d
id not produce any significant increase in rain amounts. In the modera
te and extreme continental clouds, with tops at -20 degrees C, seeding
with IN at the optimal time and location increased the precipitation
by 9% and 35%, respectively. Ice nuclei seeding of a warmer cloud with
a top temperature of -12 degrees C did not change the rainfall when s
eeding rook place in the optimal time window. Seeding with hygroscopic
particles had a dramatic effect on the rainfall. In the moderate and
extreme continental clouds increases of 65% and 109% in rain amounts w
ere obtained. In these cases, the optimal time window was longer, and
even clouds with tops at -12 degrees C doubled their rain amounts.