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McGraw & Liu 2006
McGraw, R. and Liu, Y. (2006). Brownian drift-diffusion model for evolution of droplet size distributions in turbulent clouds. Geophysical Research Letters 33: doi: 10.1029/2005GL023545. issn: 0094-8276.

Effects from turbulence-induced fluctuations in water vapor saturation on cloud droplet growth are examined using a Brownian diffusion model. The model predicts diffusive broadening of the droplet size distribution, tempered by enhanced evaporation-induced drift of droplets to smaller size from vapor depletion, and approach to a stationary condition (Weibull distribution) determined by the balance between size-space diffusion and drift. Monte Carlo simulations of the approach to the stationary limit and of the distribution itself are presented and compared favorably with observation. A key turbulence parameter required by the kinetic potential theory of drizzle formation is estimated using the new results.

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Abstract

Keywords
Atmospheric Processes, Clouds and cloud feedbacks, Atmospheric Processes, Global climate models (1626, 4928), Atmospheric Processes, Precipitation, Atmospheric Processes, Turbulence
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
http://www.agu.org/journals/gl/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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