Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations
Aerosols are critical to the Earth’s atmosphere, influencing climate through interactions with solar radiation and clouds. However, accurately replicating the interactions between aerosols and clouds remains challenging due to the complexity of the physical processes involved. This study evaluated t...
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MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/14/2439 |
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| author | Jiakun Liang Jennifer D. Small Griswold |
| author_facet | Jiakun Liang Jennifer D. Small Griswold |
| author_sort | Jiakun Liang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aerosols are critical to the Earth’s atmosphere, influencing climate through interactions with solar radiation and clouds. However, accurately replicating the interactions between aerosols and clouds remains challenging due to the complexity of the physical processes involved. This study evaluated the performance of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6) models in simulating aerosol optical depth (AOD), cloud fraction (CF), and liquid water path (LWP) by comparing them with satellite observations from MODIS and AMSR-E. Using 30 years of CMIP6 model simulations and available satellite observations during the satellite era, the results show that most CMIP6 models underestimate CF and LWP by 24.3% for LWP in the Northern Hemisphere. An assessment of spatial patterns indicates that models generally align more closely with observations in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere. Latitudinal profiles reveal that while most models capture the overall distribution patterns, they struggle to accurately reproduce observed magnitudes. A quantitative scoring system is applied to evaluate each model’s ability to replicate the spatial characteristics of multi-year mean aerosol and cloud properties. Overall, the findings suggest that CMIP6 models perform better in simulating AOD and CF than LWP, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3d4e2b0b20664f5b9b29e57446ebf974 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj-art-3d4e2b0b20664f5b9b29e57446ebf9742025-08-20T03:07:58ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922025-07-011714243910.3390/rs17142439Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite ObservationsJiakun Liang0Jennifer D. Small Griswold1Atmospheric Sciences Department, University of Hawaii at Mānoa, 2525 Correa Rd., Honolulu, HI 96822, USAAtmospheric Sciences Department, University of Hawaii at Mānoa, 2525 Correa Rd., Honolulu, HI 96822, USAAerosols are critical to the Earth’s atmosphere, influencing climate through interactions with solar radiation and clouds. However, accurately replicating the interactions between aerosols and clouds remains challenging due to the complexity of the physical processes involved. This study evaluated the performance of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6) models in simulating aerosol optical depth (AOD), cloud fraction (CF), and liquid water path (LWP) by comparing them with satellite observations from MODIS and AMSR-E. Using 30 years of CMIP6 model simulations and available satellite observations during the satellite era, the results show that most CMIP6 models underestimate CF and LWP by 24.3% for LWP in the Northern Hemisphere. An assessment of spatial patterns indicates that models generally align more closely with observations in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere. Latitudinal profiles reveal that while most models capture the overall distribution patterns, they struggle to accurately reproduce observed magnitudes. A quantitative scoring system is applied to evaluate each model’s ability to replicate the spatial characteristics of multi-year mean aerosol and cloud properties. Overall, the findings suggest that CMIP6 models perform better in simulating AOD and CF than LWP, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/14/2439CMIP6satelliteaerosolcloud |
| spellingShingle | Jiakun Liang Jennifer D. Small Griswold Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations Remote Sensing CMIP6 satellite aerosol cloud |
| title | Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations |
| title_full | Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations |
| title_fullStr | Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations |
| title_short | Assessment of Aerosol Optical Depth, Cloud Fraction, and Liquid Water Path in CMIP6 Models Using Satellite Observations |
| title_sort | assessment of aerosol optical depth cloud fraction and liquid water path in cmip6 models using satellite observations |
| topic | CMIP6 satellite aerosol cloud |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/14/2439 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jiakunliang assessmentofaerosolopticaldepthcloudfractionandliquidwaterpathincmip6modelsusingsatelliteobservations AT jenniferdsmallgriswold assessmentofaerosolopticaldepthcloudfractionandliquidwaterpathincmip6modelsusingsatelliteobservations |