One of the most promising methods to test the representation of cloud processes used in climate models is to use observations together with cloud resolving models (CRMs). CRMs use more sophisticated and realistic representations of cloud microphysical processes, and they can reasonably well resolve the time evolution, structure, and life cycles of clouds and cloud systems (with sizes ranging fromabout 2-200 km). CRMs also allow for explicit interaction between clouds, outgoing longwave (cooling)and incoming solar (heating) radiation, and ocean and land surface processes. Observations are requiredto initialize CRMs and to validate their results.
This paper provides a briefdiscussion and review of the main characteristics of CRMs as well as some of their major applications. These include the use of CRMs to improve our understanding oft (1) convective organization, (2) cloud temperature and water vapor budgets, and convective momentum transport, (3) diurnal variation of precipitation processes, (4) radiative-convective quasi-equilibrium states, (5) cloud-chemistry interaction, (6) aerosol-precipitation interaction, and (7) improving moist processes in large-scale models. In addition, current and future developments and applications of CRMs will be presented.