Aerosols capable of absorbing sunlight such as smoke and dust interact with their larger-scale environment through processes that are distinct from those linked to scattering-only aerosols. Prevailing wind patterns can transport the dust and smoke far from their sources, providing vast spatial coverages. The diabatic heating from shortwave absorption provides a warming to climate, affecting regional cloud and precipitation patterns. The aerosol impacts depend on the amount of sunlight absorbed, which in turn is sensitive to the single-scattering albedo, the aerosol loading, and the albedo underlying the aerosol layer. The small-scale radiative-cloud interactions will depend on the relative vertical cloud-aerosol location. Clouds can thicken, for example through an increase in the lower-tropospheric stability, or thin, for example through a decrease of relative humidity if temperatures increase in the boundary layer. The cloud response will also differ depending on how the attenuated solar radiation affects the surface and boundary layer turbulent fluxes (e.g., if the surface is ocean or land). Aerosol deposition is also important to the surface properties. Presentations are solicited on the scientific advancements in the characterization of the aerosol properties, and the processes through which the aerosol heating interacts with its environment at all scales, from cloud-scale to the large-scale circulation. These include fieldwork, lab experiments, and modeling investigations.

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