Measurement of ice nucleating particles on the Central Tianshan Mountains

Mixed-phase clouds are the main source of precipitation over the mainland China. Atmospheric ice nucleating particle (INP) is one of the most important preconditions for ice formation, and is vital in controlling the microphysics and optical properties in mixed-phase clouds. In this study, the concentration of INP was measured in different seasons in Tian Shan Mountains, which is the largest mountain system in central Aisa. The results show that the INP concentration was an order of magnitude higher than that measured 20 years ago. The surface active site density (ns) was higher than in other areas, while the INP concentration was similar. The observed INP concentration in summer was higher than that in winter. A good correlation was found between the INP con-centration and the number concentration of aerosol particles with a size >1.0 mu m. And the correlation with aerosol surface concentration is slightly higher than number concentration. Several parameterizations of INPs are compared based on the measurements, and the analysis indicate that the parametrizations with supersaturation considered are more consistent with the observation.