Investigation of the Cloud-Precipitation Properties of Three Modes of MCSs during the PECAN Field Campaign

According to Parker and Johnson (2000), linear mesoscale convective systems (MCS) can be classified into three common modes based on the positions of the majority of the stratiform precipitation – trailing (TS), leading (LS) or parallel (PS) to the convective line. Two TS (UFO10 and IOP27), one LS (UFO8A), and one PS (IOP23) linear MCS cases that occurred during the Plains Elevated Convection at Night (PECAN) campaign were selected to investigate the precipitation and cloud properties associated with each type of system. Utilizing the method of Feng et al. (2011), each system is classified into convective core (CC), stratiform rain (SR) and anvil regions. The SR regions behind (referred as SR1) and ahead of (referred as SR2) the convective line are separated. The ice water content (IWC) for two SR regions are retrieved based on radar reflectivity using an algorithm from Tian et al. (2016). The precipitation characteristics of two SR regions are identified using the hourly stage-IV data. For TS cases, IWCs at 5 km are found to be higher in SR1 regions than in the SR2 regions in the early stages. Higher precipitation amounts are found in SR2 regions for TS cases. In the PS case, IWC values are similar to those in TS, but the precipitation amounts in the two SR regions are not significantly different. The LS case, in contrast to the TS cases, has higher IWCs in SR2 regions which gradually decrease with time and larger precipitation amounts are in SR1 region. The vertical distributions of IWC in two SR regions will be further investigated. The environmental conditions associated with each case will be analyzed using PECAN Integrated Sounding Array (PISA) to understand the cause of the differences in cloud microphysical properties. The IWC retrieval algorithm used in this study will also be compared with microphysical data collected by P-3 aircraft during the campaign.