This chapter addresses the shortcomings that emerge in global climate models attributable to the interactions between resolved and parametized unresolved cloud-related processes (convection, turbulence, clouds and radiation). It also discusses alternative modeling techniques to study perturbed clouds, which include the numerical weather prediction model, large eddy simulation models, cloud-resolving models, and super-parameterized single column models.

An overview of the two FEBUKO aerosol-cloud interaction field experiments in the Thuringer Wald (Germany) in October 2001 and 2002 and the corresponding modelling project MODMEP is given. Experimentally, a variety of measurement methods were deployed to probe the gas phase, particles and cloud droplets at three sites upwind, downwind and within an orographic cloud with special emphasis on the budgets and interconversions of organic gas and particle phase constituents. Out of a total of 14 sampling periods within 30 cloud events three events (El, Ell and EIII) are selected for detailed analysis. At various occasions an impact of the cloud process on particle chemical composition such as on the organic compounds content, sulphate and nitrate and also on particle size distributions and particle mass is observed. Moreover, direct phase transfer of polar organic compound from the gas phase is found to be very important for the understanding of cloudwater composition.For the modelling side, a main result of the MODMEP project is the development of a cloud model, which combines a complex multiphase chemistry with detailed microphysics. Both components are described in a fine-resolved particle/drop spectrum. New numerical methods are developed for an efficient solution of the entire complex model. A further development of the CAPRAM mechanism has lead to a more detailed description of tropospheric aqueous phase organic chemistry. In parallel, effective tools for the reduction of highly complex reaction schemes are provided. Techniques are provided and tested which allow the description of complex multiphase chemistry and of detailed microphysics in multidimensional chemistry-transport models. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Atmospheric particle number size distributions determined over 1.5 years at a central European site were statistically analyzed in terms of their relation to time of day, season, meteorology, and synoptic‐scale air masses. All size distributions were decomposed into lognormal particle modes corresponding to the accumulation, Aitken, aged nucleation, and nucleation modes. The concentration of nucleation mode particles (<30 nm) behaved in a strongly diurnal fashion as a result of both anthropogenic source influence and secondary new particle formation events. The concentrations of Aitken and accumulation mode particles (>30 nm) lacked such diurnal behavior, and proved to be indicative of different synoptic‐scale air mass types. Over 70% of the time, air masses of Atlantic origin and maritime character prevailed, showing obvious signs of anthropogenic influence most of the time (accumulation mode: 500 cm−3; Aitken mode: 2300 cm−3). During a limited period of time (10%), however, continentally aged air with significantly enhanced concentrations of aerosol was observed (accumulation mode: 1200 cm−3; Aitken mode: 3300 cm−3). These air masses were advected from source regions in Russia, and eastern, southeastern, and central Europe, mainly under anticyclonic and high‐pressure influence. The analysis provides a refined picture of the behavior of the particle number size distribution and provides parameterizations that are representative for a variety of air masses in Europe and thus suitable for future climate modeling applications.