EGU26-3591, updated on 13 Mar 2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-3591
EGU General Assembly 2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Poster | Thursday, 07 May, 10:45–12:30 (CEST), Display time Thursday, 07 May, 08:30–12:30
 
Hall X5, X5.299
The Impact of Aerosol Size on the Efficacy of Marine Cloud Brightening
Knut von Salzen1, Haruki Hirasawa1, Philip Rasch1, Robert Wood1, Lucas McMichael1, and Sarah Doherty2
Knut von Salzen et al.
  • 1Atmospheric and Climate Science, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States of America (kvsalzen@uw.edu)
  • 2The Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies, Seattle, WA, United States of America (sdoherty@uw.edu)
The injection of sea salt produces a wide range of cloud microphysical and radiative responses in simulations of subtropical Marine Cloud Brightening (MCB) in the global climate models CESM2, E3SMv2, and CanAM5.1-PAM. Comparisons with an adiabatic cloud parcel model show that differences in the simulated cloud droplet number can be attributed to differences in parameterizations of aerosol activation, sea salt particle size, aerosol lifetimes, and cloud updraft velocities. These findings establish a roadmap for the analysis of MCB simulations within Earth System Models and the identification of model improvements that are urgently needed for more robust assessments of MCB cloud and climate impacts.

How to cite: von Salzen, K., Hirasawa, H., Rasch, P., Wood, R., McMichael, L., and Doherty, S.: The Impact of Aerosol Size on the Efficacy of Marine Cloud Brightening, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-3591, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-3591, 2026.