What makes thunderstorms clump, even to the point of singularity, over uniform oceans? Three recent papers in JAMES address this question, and a new Commentary ties them together.
Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems (JAMES)
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Climate Change Influences the Dynamics Behind Tropical Cyclones
A new model reveals how cumulus convection, humidity, and tropical circulations interact as global temperatures rise.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Nitrogen Garners Starring Role in Refined Earth System Model
Scientists create a more realistic representation of plant nitrogen uptake and usage to improve global climate simulations.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Modeling the Effects of Clouds on Climate
New research investigates how mixed-phase cloud partitioning and cloud cover compensate each other in GCMs.
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Permafrost Area Is Sensitive to Key Soil and Snow Physics
Accounting for key soil and snow variables shows a much higher impact on simulated permafrost area than uncertainties in land cover and climate data.
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Modeling Weather over Mountainous Terrain
Scientists use high-resolution models to study how the jagged terrain of the Earth's mountains influences precipitation.
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Improved Models of Wind Flow over Mountains
A new approach for representing areas of low-lying mountains improves the simulation of atmospheric flow over gentle topography without increasing computational requirements.
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Illuminating the Controls of Convection
Researchers compare observations and models of air circulation over the tropics to determine if simulations capture how the environment shapes convection.
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Aerosols Make Cumulus Clouds Brighter but Shorter Lived
Computer simulations show that although adding aerosol particles to clouds can make them more reflective, the cooling effect from clouds is largely counterbalanced by a reduction in overall cloud cover.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Wind Shear Measures Help Predict Tropical Cyclones
New experiments explore how wind shear impacts tropical storm dynamics and may hold clues for better prediction.