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Properties of Clouds and Cloud Systems

  • Conference paper
Radiation and Water in the Climate System

Part of the book series: Nato ASI Series ((ASII,volume 45))

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Abstract

Observations of clouds from the surface, aircraft and spacecraft gi ve the impression of great complexity and variability. Quantitative descriptions of the variety of clouds and determination of its causes have been limited by lack of comprehensive and systematic observations that cover the full range of space and time scales over which clouds vary. Now, there are two cloud datasets that cover scales from 30 km and 3 hr up to the whole globe for more than a decade, giving us, for the first time, a truly global view of clouds and their variability. One dataset provides information on cloud cover, cloud base heights and cloud morphology from several decades of surface weather observations (Warren et al., 1986, 1988; Hahn et al., 1995). These observations can be supplemented by balloon measurements of t he profiles of atmospheric temperature and humidity that can provide information about cloud layer structure (Poore et al., 1995; Wang and Rossow, 1995). Much more detailed cloud observations of global cloudiness are possible using satellite remote sensing. A comprehensive survey of cloud cover, cloud top temperature/pressure and visible optical thickness has been produced from more than a decade of observations from the international constellation of weather satellites (Schiffer and Rossow, 1983; Rossow and Schiffer, 1991). Newer satellite instruments and analysis techniques extend the list of cloud properties that can be measured by satellites. Combining all of these results provides the best available survey of cloud properties and also indicates what satellite instruments should be included in a future cloud observing system.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, 10025, USA

    William B. Rossow

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  1. William B. Rossow
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Atmosphärenphysik, GKSS-Forschungszentrum, D-21502, Geesthacht, Germany

    Ehrhard Raschke

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© 1996 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Rossow, W.B. (1996). Properties of Clouds and Cloud Systems. In: Raschke, E. (eds) Radiation and Water in the Climate System. Nato ASI Series, vol 45. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-03289-3_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-03289-3_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-08261-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-662-03289-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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