The Influence of Supersaturation Fluctuations on Droplet Size Spectra Formation

Abstract

The concept of droplet spectrum local broadening and narrowing is introduced. It is shown that a cloud droplet spectrum may be narrowed at one size interval and broadened at another simultaneously. Numerical simulations indicate that the salinity and surface curvature terms may produce absolute and relative broadening of droplet spectra in stratiform clouds in several tens of minutes, with variations of the supersaturation arising from typical turbulent vertical velocity fluctuations. The changes in shape of the droplet size spectrum are not reversible in these processes.