Indirect Radiative and Climatic Effects of Sulfate and Organic Carbon Aerosols over East Asia Investigated by RIEMS

The indirect radiative and climatic effects of sulfate and organic carbon aerosols over East Asia were investigated using a Regional Integrated Environment Model System (RIEMS) with an empirical aerosol-cloud parameterization.The first indirect radiative forcing was negative and ranged from-9-0 W m-2 in the domain.The maximum cooling,up to-9 W m-2,occurred in the Chongqing District in winter,whereas the cooling areas were larger during summer than in winter.Organic carbon (OC) aerosols were more abundant in winter than in summer,whereas the sulfate concentration during summer was much higher than during winter.The concentrations of sulfate and OC were comparable in winter,and sulfate played a dominant role in determining indirect radiative forcing in summer,whereas in winter,both sulfate and OC were important.The regional mean indirect radiative forcings were-0.73 W m-2 and-0.41 W m-2 in summer and winter,respectively.The surface cooling caused by indirect effects was more obvious in winter than that in summer.The ground temperature decreased by ～1.2 K in most areas of eastern China in winter,whereas in summer,the temperature decreased (～-1.5 K) in some regions,such as the Yangtze River region,but increased (～0.9 K) in the areas between the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers.In winter,the precipitation decreased by 0-6 mm in most areas of eastern China,but in summer,alternating bands of increasing (up to 80 mm) and decreasing (～-80 mm) precipitation appeared in eastern China.

Modeling of the Second Indirect Effect of Anthropogenic Aerosols in East Asia

This study investigated the second indirect climatic effect of anthropogenic aerosols,including sulfate,organic carbon(OC) ,and black carbon(BC) ,over East Asia.The seasonal variation of the climatic response to the second indirect effect was also characterized.The simulation period for this study was 2006.Due to a decrease in autoconversion rate from cloud water to rain as a result of aerosols,the cloud liquid water path(LWP) ,and radiative flux(RF) at the top of the atmosphere(TOA) changed dramatically,increasing by 14.3 g m-2 and decreasing by-4.1 W m-2 in terms of domain and annual average.Both LWP and RF changed most in autumn. There were strong decreases in ground temperature in Southwest China,the middle reaches of the Yangtze River in spring and autumn,while maximum cooling of up to-1.5 K occurred in the Chongqing district.The regional and annual mean change in ground temperature reached-0.2 K over eastern China.In all seasons except summer,precipitation generally decreased in most areas north of the Yangtze River,whereas precipitation changed little in South China.Precipitation changed most in summer,with alternating bands of increasing(～40 mm) and decreasing(～40 mm) precipitation appearing in eastern China.Precipitation decreased by 1.5-40 mm over large areas of Northeast China and the Huabei Plain.The domain and annual mean change in precipitation was approximately-0.3 mm over eastern China.The maximum reduction in precipitation occurred in summer,with mean absolute and relative changes of-1.2 mm and-3.8%over eastern China.This study revealed considerable climate responses to the second indirect effect of aerosols over specific regions of China.