Cotton-ball clouds contained: New modeling method captures clouds' shading effects
Tuesday, January 15, 2013 - 07:50
in Earth & Climate
(Phys.org)—Small clouds equal big impact. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory designed an update to a frequently used computer model that represents the impact of small, puffy, fair-weather clouds on the amount of sunshine reaching Earth's surface. The new method includes variations in temperature and humidity near the surface and their role in forming these small clouds. Their method offers improved climate forecasts and better cloud prediction, including the amount of sunshine the clouds reflect.