Staff information

Biography

Dr. Jennifer Comstock is currently the Group Lead for the Climate Physics Educational Development Group where she is responsible for the overall management of Post-Docs and Interns in the Climate Physics Group. She is also a member of the ARM Aerial Facility, which is team of scientists who conduct aircraft based field campaigns for the DOE ARM program.

Dr. Comstock's scientific research focuses on understanding physical processes that influence cloud lifecycle using remote sensing and computational modeling techniques.

Research Interests

• Cloud Physics
• Ice and mixed phase cloud processes
• Cloud radiative forcing

Education and Credentials

• Ph.D. Meteorology, University of Utah
• B.A. Physics, University of Colorado

Affiliations and Professional Service

• American Meteorological Society
• American Geophysical Union

Awards and Recognitions

• Recipient of the Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences, 1998
• AMS Committee for Laser Atmospheric Studies
• Steering Committee for the Cloud Lifecycle Working Group (DOE ASR Program)

PNNL Publications

2012

• Kulkarni GR, J Fan, JM Comstock, X Liu, and M Ovchinnikov. 2012. "Laboratory Measurements and Model Sensitivity Studies of Dust Deposition Ice Nucleation." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 12(16):7295-7308.  doi:10.5194/acp-12-7295-2012
• Qian Y, CN Long, H Wang, JM Comstock, SA McFarlane, and S Xie. 2012. "Evaluation of cloud fraction and its radiative effect simulated by IPCC AR4 global models against ARM surface observations." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 12(4):1785-1810.  doi:10.5194/acp-12-1785-2012
• Riihimaki LD, SA McFarlane, and JM Comstock. 2012. "Climatology and Formation of Tropical Midlevel Clouds at the Darwin ARM Site." Journal of Climate 25(19):6835-6850.  doi:10.1175/JCLI-D-11-00599.1
• Vogelmann AM, G McFarquhar, JA Ogren, DD Turner, JM Comstock, G Feingold, CN Long, H Jonsson, A Bucholtz, DR Collins, GS Diskin, H Gerber, P Lawson, R Woods, E Andrews, HJ Yang, CJ Chiu, D Hartsock, JM Hubbe, C Lo, A Marshak, J Monroe, SA McFarlane, B Schmid, JM Tomlinson, and T Toto. 2012. "RACORO Extended-Term Aircraft Observations of Boundary-Layer Clouds." Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 93(6):861-878. 
• Zaveri RA, WJ Shaw, DJ Cziczo, B Schmid, R Ferrare, ML Alexander, M Alexandrov, RJ Alvarez, WP Arnott, D Atkinson, S Baidar, RM Banta, JC Barnard, J Beranek, LK Berg, FJ Brechtel, WA Brewer, JF Cahill, B Cairns, CD Cappa, D Chand, S China, JM Comstock, MK Dubey, RC Easter, Jr, MH Erickson, JD Fast, C Floerchinger, BA Flowers, E Fortner, JS Gaffney, MK Gilles, K Gorkowski, WI Gustafson, Jr, MS Gyawali, J Hair, M Hardesty, JW Harworth, SC Herndon, N Hiranuma, CA Hostetler, JM Hubbe, JT Jayne, H Jeong, BT Jobson, EI Kassianov, LI Kleinman, CD Kluzek, B Knighton, KR Kolesar, C Kuang, A Kubatova, AO Langford, A Laskin, NS Laulainen, RD Marchbanks, C Mazzoleni, F Mei, RC Moffet, DA Nelson, M Obland, H Oetjen, TB Onasch, I Ortega, M Ottaviani, MS Pekour, KA Prather, JG Radney, R Rogers, SP Sandberg, A Sedlacek, C Senff, G Senum, A Setyan, JE Shilling, MKB Shrivastava, C Song, SR Springston, R Subramanian, K Suski, JM Tomlinson, RM Volkamer, HA Wallace, J Wang, AM Weickmann, DR Worsnop, XY Yu, A Zelenyuk, and Q Zhang. 2012. "Overview of the 2010 Carbonaceous Aerosols and Radiative Effects Study (CARES)." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 12(16):7647-7687.  doi:10.5194/acp-12-7647-2012
• Zhao C, S Xie, SA Klein, A Protat, MD Shupe, SA McFarlane, JM Comstock, J Delanoe, M Deng, M Dunn, R Hogan, D Huang, M Jensen, GG Mace, R McCoy, EJ O'Conner, D Turner, and Z Wang. 2012. "Toward Understanding of Differences in Current Cloud Retrievals of ARM Ground-based Measurements." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 117:Article No. D10206.  doi:10.1029/2011JD016792

2011

• Dupont JC, M Haeffelin, Y Morille, JM Comstock, CJ Flynn, CN Long, C Sivaraman, and RK Newsom. 2011. "Cloud properties derived from two lidars over the ARM SGP site." Geophysical Research Letters 38:Article No. L08814.  doi:10.1029/2010GL046274
• Thorsen TJ, Q Fu, and JM Comstock. 2011. "Comparison of the CALIPSO satellite and ground-based observations of cirrus clouds at the ARM TWP sites." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 116:Article No. D21203.  doi:10.1029/2011JD015970
• Zhao Y, GG Mace, and JM Comstock. 2011. "The Occurrence of Particle Size Distribution Bimodality in Midlatitude Cirrus as Inferred from Ground-Based Remote Sensing Data." Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 68(6):1162-1177.  doi:10.1175/2010JAS3354.1

2010

• Dupont JC, M Haeffelin, Y Morille, V Noel, P Keckhut, D Winker, JM Comstock, P Chervet, and A Roblin. 2010. "Macrophysical and optical properties of midlatitude cirrus clouds from four ground-based lidars and collocated CALIOP observations." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 115:D00H24.  doi:10.1029/2009JD011943
• Fan J, JM Comstock, and M Ovchinnikov. 2010. "The cloud condensation nuclei and ice nuclei effects on tropical anvil characteristics and water vapor of the tropical tropopause layer." Environmental Research Letters 5(4):Article No. 044005.  doi:10.1088/1748-9326/5/4/044005
• Fan J, JM Comstock, M Ovchinnikov, SA McFarlane, G McFarquhar, and G Allen. 2010. "Tropical anvil characteristics and water vapor of the tropical tropopause layer: Impact of heterogeneous and homogeneous freezing parameterizations ." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 115:D12201.  doi:10.1029/2009JD012696
• Naud CM, AD Del Genio, M Haeffelin, Y Morille, V Noel, JC Dupont, DD Turner, C Lo, and JM Comstock. 2010. "Thermodynamic phase profiles of optically thin midlatitude cloud and their relation to temperature ." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 115(D11202):,
• Pierce JR, R Kahn, MR Davis, and JM Comstock. 2010. "Detecting thin cirrus in Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer aerosol retrievals." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 115(D08201):, doi:10.1029/2009JD013019
• Zhang Z, S Platnick, P Yang, AK Heidinger, and JM Comstock. 2010. "Effects of ice particle size vertical inhomogeneity on the passive remote sensing of ice clouds ." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 115:Article No. D17203.  doi:10.1029/2010JD013835

2009

• Fan J, M Ovtchinnikov, JM Comstock, SA McFarlane, and A Khain. 2009. "Ice Formation in Arctic Mixed-Phase Clouds: Insights from a 3-D Cloud-Resolving Model with Size-Resolved Aerosol and Cloud Microphysics ." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 114(D04205):, doi:10.1029/2008JD010782
• Fan J, T Yuan, JM Comstock, SJ Ghan, A Khain, LYR Leung, Z Li, VJ Martins, and M Ovchinnikov. 2009. "Dominant Role by Vertical Wind Shear in Regulating Aerosol Effects on Deep Convective Clouds." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 114(D22206):, doi:10.1029/2009JD012352

2008

• Comstock JM, RF Lin, DO Starr, and P Yang. 2008. "Understanding Ice Supersaturation, Particle Growth, and Number Concentration in Cirrus Clouds." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 113:D23211.  doi:10.1029/2008JD010332
• Barnard JC, CN Long, EI Kassianov, SA McFarlane, JM Comstock, M Freer, and G McFarquhar. 2008. "Development and Evaluation of a Simple Algorithm to Find Cloud Optical Depth with Emphasis on Thin Ice Clouds." Open Atmospheric Science Journal 2:46-55.  doi:10.2174/1874282300802010046

2007

• Comstock JM, R d'Entremont, D DeSlover, GG Mace, SY Matrosov, SA McFarlane, P Minnis, D Mitchell, K Sassen, MD Shupe, DD Turner, and Z Wang. 2007. "An Intercomparison of Microphysical Retrieval Algorithms for Upper-Tropospheric Ice Clouds." Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 88(2):191-204. 
• Sassen K, L Wang, DO Starr, JM Comstock, and M Quante. 2007. "A Midlatitude Cirrus Cloud Climatology from the Facility for Atmospheric Remote Sensing: Part V. Cloud Structural Properties." Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 64(7):2483-2501. 

2004

• Comstock JM, and C Jakob. 2004. "Evaluation of Tropical Cirrus Cloud Properties Derived from ECMWF Model Output and Ground Based Measurements over Nauru Island." Geophysical Research Letters 31(10):L10106. 
• Comstock JM, TP Ackerman, and DD Turner. 2004. "ARM Raman Lidar Measurements of High Ice Supersaturation in Cirrus Clouds." In 22nd International Laser Radar Conference (ILRC 2004): Matera, Italy 12-16 July 2004. European Space Agency, (Special Publication) ESA SP, vol. 1, no. 561, pp. 301-303.  European Space Agency, Noordwijk, Netherlands. 
• Comstock JM, TP Ackerman, and DD Turner. 2004. "Evidence of High Ice Supersaturation in Cirrus Clouds Using ARM Raman Lidar Measurements." Geophysical Research Letters 31(11):L11106. 
• Hollars S, Q Fu, JM Comstock, and TP Ackerman. 2004. "Comparisons of Cloud-Top Height Retrievals from Ground-Based 35 GHz MMCR and GMS-5 Satellite Observations at ARM TWP Manus Site." Atmospheric Research 72(1-4):169-186. 

2003

• Sassen K, Z Wang, CMR Platt, and JM Comstock. 2003. "Parameterization of Infrared Absorption in Midlatitude Cirrus Clouds." Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 60(2):428-433. 

2002

• Carlin B, Q Fu, U Lohmann, GG Mace, K Sassen, and JM Comstock. 2002. "High-Cloud Horizontal Inhomogeneity and Solar Albedo Bias." Journal of Climate 15(17):2321-2339. 
• Comstock JM, TP Ackerman, and GG Mace. 2002. "Ground-Based Lidar and Radar Remote Sensing of Tropical Cirrus Clouds at Nauru Island: Cloud Statistics and Radiative Impacts." Journal of Geophysical Research. D. (Atmospheres) 107(D23):4714.  doi:10.1029/2002JD002203

2001

• Comstock JM, and K Sassen. 2001. "Retrieval of Cirrus Cloud Radiative and Backscattering Properties Using Combined Lidar and Infrared Radiometer (LIRAD) Measurements." Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 18(10):1658-1673. 
• Sassen K, JM Comstock, and Z Wang. 2001. "Parameterization of the Radiative Properties of Midlatitude High and Middle Level Clouds." Geophysical Research Letters 28(4):729-732. 
• Sassen K, and JM Comstock. 2001. "A Midlatitude Cirrus Cloud Climatology from the Facility for Atmospheric Remote Sensing. Part III: Radiative Properties." Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 58(15):2113-2127.