The Finite Element Sea Ice-Ocean Model (FESOM) v.1.4: formulation of an ocean general circulation model

• Published in: Geoscientific Model Development
• Main Authors: Wang, Q., Danilov, S., Sidorenko, D., Timmermann, R., Wekerle, C., Wang, X., Jung, T., Schröter, J.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: Sea ice
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-7-663-2014; https://gmd.copernicus.org/articles/7/663/2014/

The Finite Element Sea Ice-Ocean Model (FESOM) is the first global ocean general circulation model based on unstructured-mesh methods that has been developed for the purpose of climate research. The advantage of unstructured-mesh models is their flexible multi-resolution modelling functionality. In this study, an overview of the main features of FESOM will be given; based on sensitivity experiments a number of specific parameter choices will be explained; and directions of future developments will be outlined. It is argued that FESOM is sufficiently mature to explore the benefits of multi-resolution climate modelling and that its applications will provide information useful for the advancement of climate modelling on unstructured meshes.