Equilibrium climate sensitivity increases with aerosol concentration due to changes in precipitation efficiency

Abstract. How Earth's climate reacts to anthropogenic forcing is one of the most burning questions faced by today's scientific community. A leading source uncertainty in estimating this sensitivity related response clouds. Under canonical climate-change perspective forcings and feedbacks, effect aerosols on clouds categorized under component, while modifications radiative properties due change are considered feedback component. Each these components contributes largest portion its relevant category largely studied separately from other. In paper, using idealized cloud-resolving radiative–convective-equilibrium simulations, with a slab ocean model, we show that aerosol–cloud interactions could affect cloud feedback. Specifically, equilibrium increases high aerosol concentration an increase short-wave The enhanced high-aerosol conditions stronger precipitation efficiency warming, which can be explained higher droplet size water content CO2 rise. These results indicate possible connection between interactions.