Marine stratus and stratocumulus cloud layer

The Landsat image of May 22, 1991 shows the marine stratus and stratocumulus cloud layer that moved into the San Francisco Bay-Delta and Monterey Bay. Several cloud patterns can be seen in this image: the eddy-like spiral to the west of the Golden Gate, the darker linear cloud feature that parallels the coast down to Monterey Bay, and fog funneling from Monterey Bay inland. Researchers are using synoptic meteorology, aerosol chemistry, cloud thermodynamics, microphysics, and physical oceanography to better understand the processes behind these patterns. This research will improve the representation of clouds in global circulation and climate models.