Cloud condensation nuclei
CCN
Airborne particles that serve as an initial site for the condensation of liquid water, which can lead to the formation of cloud droplets. See also Aerosols.
Definition courtesy of IPCC AR4.
All IPCC definitions taken from Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Working Group I Contribution to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Annex I, Glossary, pp. 941-954. Cambridge University Press.