Vol. 18, issue 05-06, article # 11

Abstract:

Numerical estimates have been obtained that the smoke aerosol, produced by forest fires, can reduce precipitation. The phase composition of clouds with supercooled tops, which produce the most intense precipitation in the mid-latitudes, is very sensitive to the presence of aerosol particles with the size larger than 1 mm. The intrusion of coarse smoke aerosol is accompanied by fast crystallization of water droplets in the upper part of a cloud. Such clouds produce much less intense precipitation.