Spatial inhomogeneities of cirrus clouds as derived from in situ ice particle measurements

Abstract

Spatial inhomogeneities of cirrus cloud properties are commonly present on different scales. They reflect the variations of microphysical parameters such as particle concentration, average diameter and ice water content and often show a kind of wave structure caused by different atmospheric processes. This work utilizes airborne in situ data from the European Cloud and Radiation Experiment (EUCREX), collected during several flights through different types of cirrus clouds to describe spatial inhomogeneities in terms of microphysical properties. The results of several flights will be shown in this paper in order to give an outline on the appearance of wave structures in cirrus clouds. Spectral analysis is used to acquire information on the characteristic spatial scales of these waves. Derived scales are on average 14 km, 4.9 km and 2.3 km. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.