Category Archives: Microphysics

Investigating Clouds With New Radar Technology

Posted on 28 March, 2022 by danaallen

By: Christopher Westbrook Since I joined the University of Reading in 2005 as a research assistant, I have been using radars at the Chilbolton Observatory to study the processes in clouds. I’m very excited at the moment to be part … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Clouds, Microphysics, radar, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

The Other Climate Impact Of Aviation

Posted on 2 August, 2021 by danaallen

By: Ella Gilbert In-flight entertainment Picture yourself in the window seat of an aeroplane, cruising along at 30,000 feet, occasionally admiring the clouds below and watching that cheesy blockbuster you were too shy to go and see in the cinema. … Continue reading →

Posted in aviation, Climate, Microphysics | Leave a comment

Improving model representation of cloud ice using cloud radar and aircraft observations

Posted on 22 July, 2019 by danaallen

By: Peggy Achtert Understanding the evolution of the ice phase in clouds is of great importance for understanding the development of thunderstorms and the formation of heavy rain. However, cloud ice poses an enormous challenge for both measurements and modelling. While … Continue reading →

Posted in Clouds, Microphysics, radar | Leave a comment

Laboratory experiments investigating falling snowflakes

Posted on 21 January, 2019 by danaallen

By: Mark McCorquodale In the UK there are, on average, just 23.7 days of snowfall or sleet a year. However, precipitation in the form of ice crystals, or snowflakes, is an important feature within the atmosphere, both in the UK … Continue reading →

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Smoke, science, and sharks

Posted on 5 November, 2018 by

By Ross Herbert In the August of 2017 the Cloud-Aerosol-Radiation Interactions and Forcing – Year 2017 (CLARIFY) measurement campaign took place on a tiny island in the middle of the southeast Atlantic Ocean where we were surrounded by whales, sharks, … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic, Atmospheric chemistry, Atmospheric circulation, Atmospheric optics, Climate, Climate change, Climate modelling, Clouds, Data collection, earth observation, Energy budget, Environmental hazards, Greenhouse gases, Measurements and instrumentation, Microphysics, Numerical modelling, Solar radiation, Weather forecasting, Wind | Tagged | Leave a comment

Image conscious atmospheric science

Posted on 1 October, 2018 by

By Giles Harrison A frequently-heard mantra in physics is “Like charges repel and unlike charges attract”. At face value this paraphrase of Coulomb’s Law seems useful for clouds too, as, quite apart from the obvious example of thunderclouds, water drops … Continue reading →

Posted in Clouds, earth observation, Measurements and instrumentation, Microphysics, Numerical modelling, University of Reading | Tagged | Leave a comment