Land Surface Atmosphere Interactions For Climate Modeling

It is well known that the interactions between land surfaces and the atmosphere, and the resulting exchanges in water and energy have a tremendous affect on climate. The inadequate representation of land-atmosphere interactions is a major weakness in current climate models, and is providing the motivation for the HAPEX and ISLSCP experiments as well as the proposed Global Energy and Water Experiment (GEWEX) and the Earth Observing System (EOS) mission. The inadequate representation reflects the recognition that the well-known phys ical relationships, which are well described at small scales, result in different relationships when represented at the scales used in climate models. Understanding this transition in the mathematical relationships with increased space-time scales appears to be very difficult, and has led to different approaches; at one extreme, the famous "bucket" model where the land-surface is a simple one layer storage without vegetation; the other extreme may be Seller's Simple Biosphere Model (Sib) where one big leaf covers the climate model grid. Given the heterogeneous nature of landforms, soils and vegetation within a climate model grid, the development of new land surface parameterizations, and their verification through large scale experiments is perceived to be a challenging area of research for the hydrology and meteorology communities. This book evolved from a workshop held at Princeton University to explore the status of land surface parameterizations within climate models, and how observa tional data can be used to assess these parameterizations and improve models.

A comprehensive 1995 treatment of all aspects of ocean-atmosphere interactions, for advanced students and professional researchers.

This volume provides an up to date overview of climate variability during the 20th century in the context of natural and anthropogenic variability. It compiles a number of contributions to a workshop held in Gwatt, Switzerland, in July 2006 dealing with different aspects of climate change, variability, and extremes during the past 100 years. The individual contributions cover a broad range of topics. The volume fills a gap in this exciting field of research.

As a consequence of recent increased awareness of the social and political dimensions of climate, many non-specialists discover a need for information about the variety of available climate models. A Climate Modelling Primer, Third Edition explains the basis and mechanisms of all types of current physically-based climate models. A thoroughly revised and updated edition, this book assists the reader in understanding the complexities and applicabilities of today’s wide range of climate models. Topics covered include the latest techniques for modelling the coupled biosphere-ocean-atmosphere system, information on current practical aspects of climate modelling and ways to evaluate and exploit the results, discussion of Earth System Models of Intermediate Complexity (EMICs), and interactive exercises based on Energy Balance Model (EBM) and the Daisyworld model. Source codes and results from a range of model types allows readers to make their own climate simulations and to view the results of the latest high resolution models. The accompanying CD contains: A suite of resources for those wishing to learn more about climate modelling. A range of model visualisations. Data from climate models for use in the classroom. Windows and Macintosh programs for an Energy Balance Model. Selected figures from the book for inclusion in presentations and lectures. Suitable for 3rd/4th year undergraduates taking courses in climate modelling, economic forecasting, computer science, environmental science, geography and oceanography. Also of relevance to researchers and professionals working in related disciplines with climate models or who need accessible technical background to climate modelling predictions.

The physics and dynamics of the atmosphere and atmosphere-ocean interactions provide the foundation of modern climate models, upon which our understanding of the chemistry and biology of ocean and land surface processes are built. Originally published in 2006, Frontiers of Climate Modeling captures developments in modeling the atmosphere, and their implications for our understanding of climate change, whether due to natural or anthropogenic causes. Emphasis is on elucidating how greenhouse gases and aerosols are altering the radiative forcing of the climate system and the sensitivity of the system to such perturbations. An expert team of authors address key aspects of the atmospheric greenhouse effect, clouds, aerosols, atmospheric radiative transfer, deep convection dynamics, large scale ocean dynamics, stratosphere-troposphere interactions, and coupled ocean-atmosphere model development. The book is an important reference for researchers and advanced students interested in the forces driving the climate system and how they are modeled by climate scientists.

Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Water Science and Application Series, Volume 3. Land surface hydrology integrates various physical, chemical and biological processes that occur above, on, and below the surface of the Earth. As a result, it is critical to accurately account for land surface processes within predictive models of hydrology, meteorology, and climate. One of our main difficulties, however, concerns the broad range of spatial and temporal scales that characterize land surface hydrological processes. For example, we determine infiltration by pore scale physics, while soil hydraulic conductivity remains a field scale property. Photosynthesis, respiration, and transpiration occur at the leaf scale. Runoff is a catchment scale process, and the variability of groundwater storage is a regional scale issue. Turbulence in land-atmosphere exchanges of heat, moisture, and momentum occur on the order of seconds to minutes, while variations in land surface and air temperatures occur much more gradually: on the order of hours. The persistence of floods and droughts is seasonal to annual, and so is the effect of El Nino on regional hydrology. Long-term climate effects occur much more slowly, on the order of years to decades.

This 1982 book consists of papers presented at the World Climate Research Programme study conference on land surface processes held in Greenbelt, Maryland from 5 to 10 January 1981. The papers cover the following: the state of knowledge of the sensitivity of atmospheric general circulation models on hydrology and other land surface processes: assessment of the state of knowledge of numerical modelling of hydrology and other land surface processes at the scale of atmospheric general circulation models; recommendations for research activities; establishment of data requirements for initialization, validation, and parameter evaluation. This book will continue to be of interest to atmospheric scientists, soil physicists, hydrologists and climatologists.