A Theory for the Balance between Warm Rain and Ice Crystal Processes of Precipitation in Mixed-Phase Clouds
Mixed-phase clouds contain both supercooled cloud liquid and ice crystals. In principle, precipitation may be initiated either by the liquid phase or by the ice phase. Ice crystals may grow by vapor diffusion to become snow ("ice crystal process"), forming "cold"precipitation. Equally, cloud droplets, when large enough, coalesce to form "warm"precipitation by the "warm rain process."Warm rain coul
