2004
DOI: 10.1175/1520-0442(2004)017<1272:wvfitt>2.0.co;2
|View full text |Cite
|
Sign up to set email alerts
|

Water Vapor Feedback in the Tropical Upper Troposphere: Model Results and Observations

Abstract: The sensitivity of water vapor in the tropical upper troposphere to changes in surface temperature is examined using a single-column, radiative-convective model that includes couplings between the moistening effects of convective detrainment, the drying effects from clear-air subsidence, and radiative heating and cooling from water vapor. Equilibrium states of this model show that as the surface warms, changes in the vertical distribution and temperature of detraining air from tropical convection lead to highe… Show more

Help me understand this report

Search citation statements

Order By: Relevance

Paper Sections

Select...
1
1
1
1

Citation Types

8
92
1
1

Year Published

2005
2005
2021
2021

Publication Types

Select...
6
2
1
1

Relationship

0
10

Authors

Journals

citations
Cited by 103 publications
(102 citation statements)
references
References 44 publications
8
92
1
1
Order By: Relevance
“…[9] In the tropical average, we see that upper troposphere RH was lower for the warmer planet, a result consistent with the simple model of Minschwaner and Dessler [2004]. Climate models also simulate this reduction in average upper-tropospheric tropical RH with a warming climate [Minschwaner et al, 2006].…”
Section: Observed Changessupporting
confidence: 77%
“…[9] In the tropical average, we see that upper troposphere RH was lower for the warmer planet, a result consistent with the simple model of Minschwaner and Dessler [2004]. Climate models also simulate this reduction in average upper-tropospheric tropical RH with a warming climate [Minschwaner et al, 2006].…”
Section: Observed Changessupporting
confidence: 77%
“…Moreover, the exact vertical profile of H 2 O in the troposphere and the cloud cover have a strong impact. The correction factors were derived from radiative transfer calculations using the Monte Carlo Atmospheric Radiative Transfer Inversion Model (McArtim, Deutschmann et al, 2011), taking into account an average H 2 O profile calculated from relative humidity profiles assuming an average lapse rate (Minschwaner and Dessler, 2004;Wagner et al, 2006) and an O 2 profile from the US standard atmosphere. The relative sensitivity of the measured O 2 absorption compared to H 2 O absorption also varies significantly depending on surface albedo values.…”
Section: Gdp 47 H 2 O Column Algorithmmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…It has long been appreciated that a warming climate is associated with small reductions in subtropical free-tropospheric relative humidity, based upon climate model simulations (e.g., Mitchell et al 1987;Sherwood et al 2010a) and recent observations (Minschwaner and Dessler 2004), which reduces the magnitude of the water vapour feedback by around 5% relative to that anticipated from the Clausius Clapeyron equation alone (e.g., Soden and Held 2006). The mechanism for this change can be related to the outflow temperature of deep convection in the tropics and linked to the altitude of neutral buoyancy.…”
Section: Dynamical Controls On the Water Vapour Greenhouse Effectmentioning
confidence: 99%