Subseasonal variability of low cloud radiative properties over the southeast Pacific Ocean

Abstract

Subseasonal variability of cloud radiative properties in the persistent southeast Pacific stratocumulus deck is investigated using MODIS satellite observations and NCEP reanalysis data. A once-daily albedo proxy is derived based on the fractional coverage of low cloud (a macrophysical field) and the cloud albedo, with the latter broken down into contributions from microphysics (cloud droplet concentration) and macrophysics (liquid water path). Subseasonal albedo variability is dominated by the contribution of low cloud fraction variability, except within 10-15° of the South American coast, where cloud albedo variability contributes significantly. Covariance between cloud fraction and cloud albedo also contributes significantly and positively to the variance in albedo, which highlights how complex and inseparable the factors controlling albedo are. Droplet concentration variability contributes only weakly to the subseasonal variability of albedo, which emphasizes that attributing albedo variability to the indirect effects of aerosols against the backdrop of natural meteorological variability is extremely challenging. © 2010 Author(s).