Examining UFS' Representation of Clouds From the SOCRATES Field Campaign Using the CCPP Single Column Model

The accurate prediction of Southern Ocean clouds poses considerable challenges in many numerical modeling systems, and biases in simulated clouds can result in radiation and precipitation biases that further affect the global energy budget. The Common Community Physics Package Single Column Model (CCPP SCM), produced by the Developmental Testbed Center (DTC), was used to extract vertical columns from a simulation of a SOCRATES case and compare the model to observations. This new SCM capability provides a useful and computationally efficient way to evaluate model physics for real cases. For this work, the SCM was run for multiple profiles for a SOCRATES case study and employed a physics suite with a detailed cloud microphysics parameterization to explore the representation of clouds over the Southern Ocean in the UFS. The SCM results were compared to aircraft and radiosonde observations from the SOCRATES field campaign to evaluate the model for thermodynamic, cloud, and radiative properties. This research will ultimately help guide improvements to physical parameterizations and reduce biases in the UFS.