Mixed phase cloud water/ice structure from high spatial resolution satellite data

Abstract

The ratio of satellite level radiances around 0.87 μm to radiances at 1.6 μm is sensitive to the material (water or ice) of cloud particles. Using the DOE MTI (Multispectral Thermal Imager) satellite based instrument we retrieve the cloud top structure of a mixed phase cloud over the Point Barrow, Alaska, with spatial resolution of about 20 m. We find a high variability on a scale of tens of meters consisting of pockets of pure water, mixed water and ice, and pockets of pure ice.