A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages
A one-level seasonal energy balance climate model which has explicit two-dimensional land-sea ge-ography is introduced and its properties analyzed. The model distinguishes land from sea surface strictly by the local thermal inertia employed. The transport is governed by a smooth latitude dependent d...
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ftciteseerx:oai:CiteSeerX.psu:10.1.1.475.6162 2023-05-15T16:21:32+02:00 A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages G. R. North J. G. Mengel D. A. Short The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives 1983 application/pdf http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.475.6162 http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf en eng http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.475.6162 http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf text 1983 ftciteseerx 2016-01-08T07:34:01Z A one-level seasonal energy balance climate model which has explicit two-dimensional land-sea ge-ography is introduced and its properties analyzed. The model distinguishes land from sea surface strictly by the local thermal inertia employed. The transport is governed by a smooth latitude dependent diffusion mechanism. The model's seasonal cycle is solved for, with and without ice feedback. In each case, good agreement with real data is accomplished with minimal tuning of the adjustable parameters. The model sensitivity for small solar constant changes is in agreement with that of other accepted models. However, when the solar constant is lower a few percent, the ice cap grows discontinuously from covering Greenland and vicinity to a size three times larger and mostly into Northern Canada. A similar discontinuous growth occurs when the orbital elements are changed to favor cool summers in the Northern Hemisphere. This discontinuous sensitivity is discussed in the context of the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages, and the associated branch structure is shown to be analogous to the so called 'small ice cap ' instability known from simpler models. Although the discontinuity in sensitivity is some-what conjectural, both linear and nonlinear models have their largest sensitivity to orbital parameter changes in the northern portions of the large continents; in the western hemisphere this also corresponds to the ice sheet boundary, suggesting that the land-sea configuration is crucial to large glacier growth irrespective of moisture budgets. Other experiments and implications are also discussed. 1. Text glacier glacier* Greenland Ice cap Ice Sheet Unknown Canada Greenland |
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ftciteseerx |
language |
English |
description |
A one-level seasonal energy balance climate model which has explicit two-dimensional land-sea ge-ography is introduced and its properties analyzed. The model distinguishes land from sea surface strictly by the local thermal inertia employed. The transport is governed by a smooth latitude dependent diffusion mechanism. The model's seasonal cycle is solved for, with and without ice feedback. In each case, good agreement with real data is accomplished with minimal tuning of the adjustable parameters. The model sensitivity for small solar constant changes is in agreement with that of other accepted models. However, when the solar constant is lower a few percent, the ice cap grows discontinuously from covering Greenland and vicinity to a size three times larger and mostly into Northern Canada. A similar discontinuous growth occurs when the orbital elements are changed to favor cool summers in the Northern Hemisphere. This discontinuous sensitivity is discussed in the context of the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages, and the associated branch structure is shown to be analogous to the so called 'small ice cap ' instability known from simpler models. Although the discontinuity in sensitivity is some-what conjectural, both linear and nonlinear models have their largest sensitivity to orbital parameter changes in the northern portions of the large continents; in the western hemisphere this also corresponds to the ice sheet boundary, suggesting that the land-sea configuration is crucial to large glacier growth irrespective of moisture budgets. Other experiments and implications are also discussed. 1. |
author2 |
The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives |
format |
Text |
author |
G. R. North J. G. Mengel D. A. Short |
spellingShingle |
G. R. North J. G. Mengel D. A. Short A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
author_facet |
G. R. North J. G. Mengel D. A. Short |
author_sort |
G. R. North |
title |
A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
title_short |
A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
title_full |
A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
title_fullStr |
A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
title_full_unstemmed |
A simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: Application to the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
title_sort |
simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents: application to the milankovitch theory of the ice ages |
publishDate |
1983 |
url |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.475.6162 http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf |
geographic |
Canada Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Canada Greenland |
genre |
glacier glacier* Greenland Ice cap Ice Sheet |
genre_facet |
glacier glacier* Greenland Ice cap Ice Sheet |
op_source |
http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf |
op_relation |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.475.6162 http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/88/simple_energy_balance_model_1983.pdf |
op_rights |
Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. |
_version_ |
1766009535403655168 |