Summary
The impact that biogenic emissions have on aerosol-cloud interactions across the Southern Ocean is poorly quantified. Here we use satellite and ship observations during austral summer to study these interactions. We present observational evidence that biogenic aerosols increase cloud condensation nuclei and cloud droplet number concentrations over the Southern Ocean off East Antarctica, coinciding with very low concentrations of ice-nucleating particles and higher occurrences of supercooled liquid-containing low-level clouds.
Authors:Mallet M. Miljevic B. Humphries R.S. Mace G.G. Alexander S. Protat A. Chambers S. Cravigan L. DeMott P.J. Fiddes S. Harnwell J. Keywood M.D. McFarquhar G.M. McRobert I. Moorne K.A. Mynard C. Osuagwu G.C. Ristovski Z. Selleck P. Taylor S. Ward J. Williams A.
Published in: 2025
Category 1: Peer-reviewed literature
Program area: Antarctic Climate
Mallet M., Miljevic B., Humphries R.S., Mace G.G., Alexander S., Protat A., Chambers S., Cravigan L., DeMott P.J., Fiddes S., Harnwell J., Keywood M.D., McFarquhar G.M., McRobert I., Moorne K.A., Mynard C., Osuagwu G.C., Ristovski Z., Selleck P., Taylor S., Ward J., Williams A.
(2025)
Biological enhancement of cloud droplet concentrations observed off East Antarctica,
npj Climate and Atmospheric Science
8(113).
doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41612-025-00990-5;