Key features of the IPSL ocean atmosphere model and its sensitivity to atmospheric resolution

International audience This paper presents the major characteristics of the Institut Pierre Simon Laplace (IPSL) coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model. The model components and the coupling methodology are described, as well as the main characteristics of the climatology and interannual...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Climate Dynamics
Main Authors: Marti, Olivier, Braconnot, Pascale, Dufresne, Jean-Louis, Bellier, Jacques, Benshila, Rachid, Bony, Sandrine, Brockmann, Patrick, Cadule, Patricia, Caubel, Arnaud, Codron, Francis, de Noblet, Nathalie, Denvil, Sébastien, Fairhead, Laurent, Fichefet, Thierry, Foujols, Marie-Alice, Friedlingstein, Pierre, Goosse, Hugues, Grandpeix, Jean-Yves, Guilyardi, Éric, Hourdin, Frédéric, Idelkadi, Abderrahmane, Kageyama, Masa, Krinner, Gerhard, Lévy, Claire, Madec, Gurvan, Mignot, Juliette, Musat, Ionela, Swingedouw, Didier, Talandier, Claude
Other Authors: Contribution to the European project ENSEMBLES (Project no. GOCE-CT-2003-505539) and to the French project MissTerre (LEFE-EVE)
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: HAL CCSD 2010
Subjects:
Coupling
Resolution
Circulation
El Niño/Southern oscillation
Climate
Simulations
Ocean
Atmosphere
North-Atlantic oscillation
Storm-tracks
[SDU.STU.GL]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Glaciology
Laplace
North Atlantic
North Atlantic oscillation
Online Access:https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00498320
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-009-0640-6
Description
Summary:International audience This paper presents the major characteristics of the Institut Pierre Simon Laplace (IPSL) coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model. The model components and the coupling methodology are described, as well as the main characteristics of the climatology and interannual variability. The model results of the standard version used for IPCC climate projections, and for intercomparison projects like the Paleoclimate Modeling Intercomparison Project (PMIP 2) are compared to those with a higher resolution in the atmosphere. A focus on the North Atlantic and on the tropics is used to address the impact of the atmosphere resolution on processes and feedbacks. In the North Atlantic, the resolution change leads to an improved representation of the storm-tracks and the North Atlantic oscillation. The better representation of the wind structure increases the northward salt transports, the deep-water formation and the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. In the tropics, the ocean-atmosphere dynamical coupling, or Bjerknes feedback, improves with the resolution. The amplitude of ENSO (El Niño-Southern oscillation) consequently increases, as the damping processes are left unchanged.

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