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Impact of mineral dust on summertime precipitation over the Taiwan region
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  • Yanda Zhang,
  • Fangqun Yu,
  • Gan Luo,
  • Jen-Ping Chen,
  • Charles C.-K. Chou
Yanda Zhang
Atmospheric Science Research Center, SUNY Albany

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Fangqun Yu
University at Albany
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Gan Luo
ASRC, SUNY-Albany
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Jen-Ping Chen
National Taiwan University
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Charles C.-K. Chou
Academia Sinica
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Abstract

Dust particles are effective ice nuclei and are known to affect precipitation. Here, the possible impacts of mineral dusts on summertime cloud and precipitation over the Taiwan region are investigated through analysis of 25 years (1989 – 2013) of multiple observational and modeling datasets. Due to the unique mechanism, typhoon precipitations are excluded in this study. Statistical methods are used to untangle the influences of dust from the co-varying water vapor conditions. The results suggest a statistically significant positive correlation between non-typhoon precipitation and number concentration of dust particles larger than 0.5 µm () in July and August in the regions with heavy precipitation. From clean (0.008 cm) to dusty days (0.2 cm), averaged ice (liquid) water paths and precipitation increase by ~25% (~20%) and ~70% over the orographic region, and vertically, ~30% more cloud ice content is generated at ~ 350 hPa (T = ~−20℃), enhancing the development of the mixed-phase cloud and precipitation. The results also indicate critical role of the atmospheric water vapor in the responses of precipitation to , with precipitation increasing more significantly with in higher water vapor circumstances.
16 Oct 2020Published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres volume 125 issue 19. 10.1029/2020JD033120