Influence of volcanic eruptions on midlatitude upper tropospheric aerosol and consequences for cirrus clouds

Friberg, Johan; Martinsson, Bengt G.; Sporre, Moa K.; Andersson, Sandra; Brenninkmeijer, Carl A. M.; Hermann, M.; Velthoven, P. F. J. van; Zahn, Andreas

doi:10.1002/2015ea000110

Cited by 20 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…Gettelman et al () and Ghan et al () found similar‐magnitude effects of anthropogenic sulfur emissions on LW radiative forcing via aerosol modification of cirrus clouds in the Community Atmosphere Model version 5. At present there are no conclusive observations (Friberg et al, ; Luo et al, ; Sassen, ) to confirm or rule out the role of volcanic sulfuric acid particles in altering the properties of ice clouds. Moreover, the results from model studies that investigate the effects of either sulfate geoengineering or volcanic eruptions on the thermodynamic and microphysical properties of cirrus clouds remain equivocal, with the resulting changes in cloudiness, ice crystal number, and mass concentrations strongly depending on the freezing parameterization, the aerosol scheme used, and the aerosol size‐number distribution produced by an eruption (e.g., Cirisan et al, ; Jensen & Toon, ; Kuebbeler et al, ; Lohmann et al, ; Visioni et al, ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 91%

Volcanic Radiative Forcing From 1979 to 2015

et al. 2018

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Using volcanic sulfur dioxide emissions in an aerosol‐climate model, we derive a time series of global‐mean volcanic effective radiative forcing (ERF) from 1979 to 2015. For 2005–2015, we calculate a global multiannual mean volcanic ERF of −0.08 W/m2 relative to the volcanically quiescent 1999–2002 period, due to a high frequency of small‐to‐moderate‐magnitude explosive eruptions after 2004. For eruptions of large magnitude such as 1991 Mt. Pinatubo, our model‐simulated volcanic ERF, which accounts for rapid adjustments including aerosol perturbations of clouds, is less negative than that reported in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) that only accounted for stratospheric temperature adjustments. We find that, when rapid adjustments are considered, the relation between volcanic forcing and volcanic stratospheric optical depth (SAOD) is 13–21% weaker than reported in IPCC AR5 for large‐magnitude eruptions. Further, our analysis of the recurrence frequency of eruptions reveals that sulfur‐rich small‐to‐moderate‐magnitude eruptions with column heights ≥10 km occur frequently, with periods of volcanic quiescence being statistically rare. Small‐to‐moderate‐magnitude eruptions should therefore be included in climate model simulations, given the >50% chance of one or two eruptions to occur in any given year. Not all of these eruptions affect the stratospheric aerosol budget, but those that do increase the nonvolcanic background SAOD by ~0.004 on average, contributing ~50% to the total SAOD in the absence of large‐magnitude eruptions. This equates to a volcanic ERF of about −0.10 W/m2, which is about two thirds of the ERF from ozone changes induced by ozone‐depleting substances.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 91%

Volcanic Radiative Forcing From 1979 to 2015

et al. 2018

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“…This relatively high depolarisation value suggests that particles in the layer were dominated by backscatter from ash rather than sulfate particles, although there was evidence of a greater backscatter by sulfate particles in the lower part of the layer. The observed mean particle depolarisation was generally higher than for the Kasatochi and Sarychev eruptions [28], less than for the Puyehue eruption [14,28] and much smaller than for the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010 [68,69].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

“…Shibata et al [68] observed liquid volcanic aerosols in association with tropical cirrus layers. Friberg et al [69] observed a decrease in mid-latitude cirrus cloud reflectance observed by satellite sensors following an increase in volcanic aerosol from several tropical eruptions. They suggested that the dimming was due to deactivation of the nuclei responsible for homogeneous freezing by the presence of volcanic sulfate aerosol.…”

Section: Synergy Of Lidar and Radiosonde Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Australian Lidar Measurements of Aerosol Layers Associated with the 2015 Calbuco Eruption

et al. 2020

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The Calbuco volcano in southern Chile (41.3° S, 72.6° W) underwent three separate eruptions on 22–23 April 2015. Following the eruptions, distinct layers of enhanced lidar backscatter at 532 nm were observed in the lower stratosphere above Buckland Park, South Australia (34.6° S, 138.5° E), and Kingston, Tasmania (43.0° S, 147.3° E), during a small set of observations in April–May 2015. Using atmospheric trajectory modelling and measurements from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) space-borne lidar and the Ozone Mapping Profiler Suite (OMPS) instrument on the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP) satellite, we show that these layers were associated with the Calbuco eruptions. Buckland Park measurements on 30 April and 3 May detected discrete aerosol layers at and slightly above the tropopause, where the relative humidity was well below saturation. Stratospheric aerosol layers likely associated with the eruptions were observed at Kingston on 17 and 22 May in narrow discrete layers accompanied by weaker and more vertically extended backscatter. The measurements on 22 May provided a mean value of the particle linear depolarisation ratio within the main observed volcanic aerosol layer of 18.0 ± 3.0%, which was consistent with contemporaneous CALIOP measurements. The depolarisation measurements indicated that this layer consisted of a filament dominated by ash backscatter residing above a main region having likely more sulfate backscatter. Layer-average optical depths were estimated from the measurements. The mean lidar ratio for the volcanic aerosols on 22 May of 86 ± 37 sr is consistent with but generally higher than the mean for ground-based measurements for other volcanic events. The inferred optical depth for the main volcanic layer on 17 May was consistent with a value obtained from OMPS measurements, but a large difference on 22 May likely reflected the spatial inhomogeneity of the volcanic plume. Short-lived enhancements of backscatter near the tropopause of 17 May likely represented the formation cirrus that was aided by the presence of associated volcanic aerosols. We also provide evidence that gravity waves potentially influenced the layers, particularly in regard to the vertical motion observed in the strong layer on 22 May. Overall, these observations provide additional information on the dispersal and characteristics of the Calbuco aerosol plumes at higher southern latitudes than previously reported for ground-based lidar measurements.

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“…This is in line with the previous finding of a strong influence of stratospheric aerosol on the extratropical UT aerosol. 11,46 Sulfate is the dominating form of the sulfurous aerosol in the atmosphere. 47,48 To further evaluate Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Formation and composition of the UTLS aerosol

et al. 2019

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Stratospheric aerosol has long been seen as a pure mixture of sulfuric acid and water. Recent measurements, however, found a considerable carbonaceous fraction extending at least 8 km into the stratosphere. This fraction affects the aerosol optical depth (AOD) and the radiative properties, and hence the radiative forcing and climate impact of the stratospheric aerosol. Here we present an investigation based on a decade (2005-2014) of airborne aerosol sampling at 9-12 km altitude in the tropics and the northern hemisphere (NH) aboard the IAGOS-CARIBIC passenger aircraft. We find that the chemical composition of tropospheric aerosol in the tropics differs markedly from that at NH midlatitudes, and, that the carbonaceous stratospheric aerosol is oxygenpoor compared to the tropospheric aerosol. Furthermore, the carbonaceous and sulfurous components of the aerosol in the lowermost stratosphere (LMS) show strong increases in concentration connected with springtime subsidence from overlying stratospheric layers. The LMS concentrations significantly exceed those in the troposphere, thus clearly indicating a stratospheric production of not only the well-established sulfurous aerosol, but also a considerable but less understood carbonaceous component.npj Climate and Atmospheric Science (2019)2:40 ; https://doi.

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Influence of volcanic eruptions on midlatitude upper tropospheric aerosol and consequences for cirrus clouds

Cited by 20 publications

References 85 publications

Volcanic Radiative Forcing From 1979 to 2015

Volcanic Radiative Forcing From 1979 to 2015

Australian Lidar Measurements of Aerosol Layers Associated with the 2015 Calbuco Eruption

Formation and composition of the UTLS aerosol

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