EVIDENCE FOR NATURAL VARIABILITY IN MARINE STRATOCUMULUS CLOUD PROPERTIES DUE TO CLOUD-AEROSOL INTERACTIONS

Large rifts and gradients are observedfrequently in the extensive stratocumulus decksthat exist over the eastern areas of the Pacificand the Atlantic. These rifts--areas of lowreflectivity and broken cloud conditions--aresometimes large enough to have a large impacton the albedo of the large-scale cloud fields, andindicate substantial natural variability in theproperties of the cloud deck (Fig. 1).Consequently, these features present a naturalsetting to study the relationship between marineaerosol properties and cloud and drizzlecharacteristics.