Observations and numerical simulations of the diurnal cycle of the EUROCS stratocumulus case

As part of the European Project on Cloud Systems (EUROCS) the diurnal cycle of stratocumulus was simulated by various numerical models including Large-Eddy Simulation models and Single-Column versions of various weather fore-cast and climate models. Radiosonde soundings collected during FIRE I were used to initialize the models. After comparing observations of boundary-layer turbulence and cloud liquid water path with the modeling results we will address the following questions:

1. What is the typical accuracy needed for entrainment rate parameterizations? 2. Do the variances of quantities like moisture and heat reach a steady-state in the boundary layer? 3. What is the effect of the development of mesoscale structures on the PDF of the liquid water path?