Factors Controlling the Size and Spacing of Cumulus Clouds as Revealed by Numerical Experiments

Abstract

Factors controlling the size and spacing of cumulus clouds are determined by the numerical integration of a compressible set of hydrodynamic equations for an atmosphere with saturation processes and cloud microphysics included. Sets of integrations, each carried out for several hours of cloud simulation, produce fields of numerical clouds that pass through various stages of development. The characteristics of clouds in the initiation, growth, and fully-developed stages are examined. In addition, the development of group structures and cloud merging are also found. Comparison of numerical results with a variety of observations shows that the model gives realistic cloud characteristics.