Shallow Clouds, Water Vapor, Circulation, and Climate Sensitivity e-bog

This volume presents a series of overview articles arising from a workshop exploring the links among shallow clouds, water vapor, circulation, and climate sensitivity. It provides a state-of-the art synthesis of understanding about the coupling of clouds and water vapor to the large-scale circulation. The emphasis is on two phenomena, namely the self-aggregation of deep convection and interactions between low clouds and the large-scale environment, with direct links to the sensitivity of climate to radiative perturbations. Each subject is approached using simulations, observations, and synthesizing theory; particular attention is paid to opportunities offered by new remote-sensing technologies, some still prospective. The collection provides a thorough grounding in topics representing one of the World Climate Research Program's Grand Challenges.Previously published in Surveys in Geophysics, Volume 38, Issue 6, 2017The aritcles "e;Observing Convective Aggregation"e;, "e;An Observational View of Relationships Between Moisture Aggregation, Cloud, and Radiative Heating Profiles"e;, "e;Implications of Warm Rain in Shallow Cumulus and Congestus Clouds for Large-Scale Circulations"e;, "e;A Survey of Precipitation-Induced Atmospheric Cold Pools over Oceans and Their Interactions with the Larger-Scale Environment"e;, "e;Low-Cloud Feedbacks from Cloud-Controlling Factors: A Review"e;, "e;Mechanisms and Model Diversity of Trade-Wind Shallow Cumulus Cloud Feedbacks: A Review"e;, "e;Structure and Dynamical Influence of Water Vapor in the Lower Tropical Troposphere"e;, "e;Emerging Technologies and Synergies for Airborne and Space-Based Measurements of Water Vapor Profiles"e;, "e;Observational Constraints on Cloud Feedbacks: The Role of Active Satellite Sensors"e;, and "e;EUREC4A: A Field Campaign to Elucidate the Couplings Between Clouds, Convection and Circulation"e; are available as open access articles under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com.