Development of a Polar stratospheric cloud model within the Community Earth System Model using constraints on Type I PSCs from the 2010-2011 Arctic winter

We establish a PSC microphysics model using coupled chemistry, climate, and microphysics models driven by specific dynamics. We explore the microphysical formation and evolution of STS (Supercooled Ternary Solution) and NAT (Nitric Acid Trihydrate).

Characteristics of STS particles dominated by thermodynamics compare well with observations. For example, the mass of STS is close to the thermodynamic equilibrium assumption when the particle surface area is >4 µm²/cm³. We derive a new nucleation rate equation for NAT based on observed denitrification in the 2010-2011 Arctic winter.