On the radiative processes associated with the tropical mesoscale convective systems

The goal of this research is to improve our understanding of the spatial and temporal characteristics of the radiative budget of the tropical mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) and to explore any possible effects of radiation on the atmosphere and the evolution of the tropical MCSs.A combination of two dimensional cloud model simulations, two-stream radiative transfer model calculations, observational analyses, and comparisons with other published results are used to achieve this goal.the behavior of this cloud radiative feedback.For example, numerical simulations with background environment characteristized by a weak vertical shear and stable lower level indicate that the persistence effects of atmospheric infrared cooling at night can weaken or destroy the stability of the lower level and allow the coupling between the cloud radiationinduced secondary circulation and the tropical MCSs to occur.Since a significant portion of the tropical atmosphere can be classified by these two examples of background environments, this cloud radiative feedback can have significant consequences in (1) the energy and the water budget of the tropical atmosphere, (2) the diurnal variations of tropical cloud clusters/deep convections, and (3) the equilibrium regional climate of the tropical atmosphere.