About 50 years ago, vorticity thinking helped unveil basic properties of squall lines. Zhang now provides a closed theory, demystifying one of nature’s most important forms of convective organization.
clouds
Posted inResearch Spotlights
If There Is Phosphine on Venus, There Isn’t Much
New observations of the Venusian atmosphere collected from an airborne observatory showed no sign of the potential biosignature gas, casting additional doubt on a previous report of its detection.
Posted inNews
Salt Spray May Stifle Lightning over the Sea
New research suggests that sea-salt aerosols seed large raindrops that starve clouds of water needed to make lightning. But not all scientists are convinced it’s simply about salt spray.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Fantastic Ice-Nucleating Particles and How to Find Them
Recent advances in measurements and models are paving the way to transform fundamental understanding and simulation of ice-nucleating particles and their climate impacts.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
New Cloud and Precipitation Data Over the Southern Ocean
New measurements show the macro- and microphysical characteristics of the clouds and precipitation over the data-space regions of the Southern Ocean.
Posted inNews
Tracking Climate Through Ship Exhaust
International regulations have reduced aerosol pollutants released from ships. Now, researchers want to use ship tracks to better understand the ambiguous effects that cleaner air has on climate.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Advanced Real-Time Prediction of Storms With 30-Second Refresh
A new-generation weather radar and a massive supercomputing system enables forecasts of storms refreshed every 30 seconds, a significant development in severe weather prediction.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Plant-Nibbling Insects May Make It Cloudier and Cooler
Insects that eat plant leaves could change the local atmosphere, but current climate models do not account for this impact.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Modeling Entrainment with Machine Learning
Researchers present a new approach to modeling the stochastic mixing process of convection using a machine learning technique.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
More Accurately Modeling Rain Formation
Rain and cloud droplets are treated as distinct categories in most models yet lie on a continuous droplet size spectrum in nature. Representing them as part of a continuous spectrum improves models.