To support the 2018 Winter Olympics with accurate weather predictions, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) initiated the International Collaborative Experiments for the PyeongChang Olympic and Paralympic Games (ICE-POP). One of the major uncertainties in the prediction of winter weather is the amount and type of snow. The cloud physics process that converts water droplets into mixed phase clouds to ice and snow is dependent on the ice nulceation process. Comparatively large uncertainties exist in the representation of ice nucleation and ice formation processes in models that forecast precipitation. Constraining this uncertainty through measurements of ice nuclei concentration improves forecast accuracy for future winter Olympics.
KMA engaged with Droplet Scientists, Drs. Darrel Baumgardner and Duncan Axisa, to perform the field work of measuring the concentration of ice nuclei as a function of temperature and humidity.