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Simple Approximations For Condensational Growth, A. B. Kostinski

Department of Physics Publications

A simple geometric argument relating to the liquid water content of clouds is given. The phase relaxation time and the nature of the quasi-steady approximation for the diffusional growth of cloud drops are elucidated directly in terms of water vapor concentration. Spatial gradients of vapor concentration, inherent in the notion of quasi-steady growth, are discussed and we argue for an occasional reversal of the traditional point of view: rather than a drop growing in response to a given supersaturation, the observed values of the supersaturation in clouds are the result of a vapor field adjusting to droplet growth. Our perspective …