The Microphysical Characteristics of Wintertime Cold Clouds in North China

The microphysical characteristics of wintertime cold clouds in North China were investigated from 22 aircraft observation flights from 2014 to 2017, 2020, and 2021. The clouds were generated by mesoscale weather systems with little orographic component. Over the mixed-phase temperature range (−10°C to 0°C), the average fraction of liquid, mixed-phase, and ice cloud was 4.9%, 23.3%, and 71.8%, respectively, and the probability distribution of ice mass fraction was a half-U-shape, suggesting that ice cloud was the primary cloud type. The wintertime mixed-phase clouds in North China were characterized by large cloud droplet number concentration, small liquid water content (LWC), and small effective diameter of cloud droplets. The main reason for larger cloud droplet number concentration and smaller effective diameter of cloud droplets was the heavy pollution in winter in North China, while for smaller LWC was the lower temperature during flights and the difference in air mass type. With the temperature increasing, cloud droplet number concentration, LWC, and the size of ice particles increased, but ice number concentration and effective diameter of cloud droplets decreased, similar to other mid-latitude regions, indicating the similarity in the temperature dependence of cloud properties of mixed-phase clouds. The variation of the cloud properties and ice habit at different temperatures indicated the operation of the aggregation and riming processes, which were commonly present in the wintertime mixed-phase clouds. This study fills a gap in the aircraft observation of wintertime cold clouds in North China.