The dynamical core, physical parameterizations, and basic simulation characteristics of the atmospheric component AM3 of the GFDL global coupled model CM3

The Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) has developed a coupled general circulation model (CM3) for the atmosphere, oceans, land, and sea ice. The goal of CM3 is to address emerging issues in climate change, including aerosol-cloud interactions, chemistry-climate interactions, and coupling...

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Published in:Journal of Climate
Other Authors: Donner, Leo (Leo J. Donner) (authoraut), Wyman, Bruce (Bruce L. Wyman) (authoraut), Hemler, Richard (Richard S. Hemler) (authoraut), Horowitz, Larry (Larry W. Horowitz) (authoraut), Ming, Yi (Yi Ming) (authoraut), Zhao, Ming (Ming Zhao) (authoraut), Golaz, Jean-Christophe (Jean-Christophe Golaz) (authoraut), Ginoux, Paul (Paul Ginoux) (authoraut), Lin, S.-J. (S.-J. Lin) (authoraut), Schwarzkopf, M. (M. Daniel Schwarzkopf) (authoraut), Austin, John (John Austin) (authoraut), Alaka, Ghassan (Ghassan Alaka) (authoraut), Cooke, William (William F. Cooke) (authoraut), Delworth, Thomas (Thomas L. Delworth) (authoraut), Freidenreich, Stuart (Stuart M. Freidenreich) (authoraut), Gordon, C. (C. T. Gordon) (authoraut), Griffies, Stephen (Stephen M. Griffies) (authoraut), Held, Isaac (Isaac M. Held) (authoraut), Hurlin, William (William J. Hurlin) (authoraut), Klein, Stephen (Stephen A. Klein) (authoraut), Knutson, Thomas (Thomas R. Knutson) (authoraut), Langenhorst, Amy (Amy R. Langenhorst) (authoraut), Lee, Hyun-Chul (Hyun-Chul Lee) (authoraut), Lin, Yanluan (Yanluan Lin) (authoraut), Magi, Brian (Brian I. Magi) (authoraut), Malyshev, Sergey (Sergey L. Malyshev) (authoraut), Milly, P. (P. C. D. Milly) (authoraut), Naik, Vaishali (Vaishali Naik) (authoraut), Nath, Mary (Mary J. Nath) (authoraut), Pincus, Robert (Robert Pincus) (authoraut), Ploshay, Jeffrey (Jeffrey J. Ploshay) (authoraut), Ramaswamy, V. (V. Ramaswamy) (authoraut), Seman, Charles (Charles J. Seman) (authoraut), Shevliakova, Elena (Elena Shevliakova) (authoraut), Sirutis, Joseph (Joseph J. Sirutis) (authoraut), Stern, William (William F. Stern) (authoraut), Stouffer, Ronald (Ronald J. Stouffer) (authoraut), Wilson, R. (R. John Wilson) (authoraut), Winton, Michael (Michael Winton) (authoraut), Wittenberg, Andrew (Andrew T. Wittenberg) (authoraut), Zeng, Fanrong (Fanrong Zeng) (authoraut)
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Meteorological Society
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1175/2011JCLI3955.1
http://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d7445n2d
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Summary:The Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) has developed a coupled general circulation model (CM3) for the atmosphere, oceans, land, and sea ice. The goal of CM3 is to address emerging issues in climate change, including aerosol-cloud interactions, chemistry-climate interactions, and coupling between the troposphere and stratosphere. The model is also designed to serve as the physical system component of earth system models and models for decadal prediction in the near-term future--for example, through improved simulations in tropical land precipitation relative to earlier-generation GFDL models. This paper describes the dynamical core, physical parameterizations, and basic simulation characteristics of the atmospheric component (AM3) of this model. Relative to GFDL AM2, AM3 includes new treatments of deep and shallow cumulus convection, cloud droplet activation by aerosols, subgrid variability of stratiform vertical velocities for droplet activation, and atmospheric chemistry driven by emissions with advective, convective, and turbulent transport. AM3 employs a cubed-sphere implementation of a finite-volume dynamical core and is coupled to LM3, a new land model with ecosystem dynamics and hydrology. Its horizontal resolution is approximately 200 km, and its vertical resolution ranges approximately from 70 m near the earth's surface to 1 to 1.5 km near the tropopause and 3 to 4 km in much of the stratosphere. Most basic circulation features in AM3 are simulated as realistically, or more so, as in AM2. In particular, dry biases have been reduced over South America. In coupled mode, the simulation of Arctic sea ice concentration has improved. AM3 aerosol optical depths, scattering properties, and surface clear-sky downward shortwave radiation are more realistic than in AM2. The simulation of marine stratocumulus decks remains problematic, as in AM2. The most intense 0.2% of precipitation rates occur less frequently in AM3 than observed. The last two decades of the twentieth century warm in CM3 by 0.32°C ...