Observational datasets used in climate studies (APPENDIX A)

• Main Author: Wuebbles, Donald
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln 2017
• Subjects: Rennie; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usdeptcommercepub/577; https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/context/usdeptcommercepub/article/1586/viewcontent/CSSR_2017___Apx_A.pdf

Observations, including those from satellites, mobile platforms, field campaigns and ground based networks, provide the basis of knowledge on many temporal and spatial scales for understanding the changes occurring in Earth’s climate system. These observations also inform the development, calibration, and evaluation of numerical models of the physics, chemistry, and biology being used in analyzing the past changes in climate and for making future projections. As all observational data collected by support from Federal agencies are required to be made available free of charge with machine readable metadata, everyone can access these products for their personal analysis and research and for informing decisions. Many of these datasets are accessible through web services. Many long-running observations worldwide have provided us with long-term records necessary for investigating climate change and its impacts. These include important climate variables such as surface temperature, sea ice extent, sea level rise, and streamflow. Perhaps one of the most iconic climatic datasets, that of atmospheric carbon dioxide measured at Mauna Loa, HI, has been recorded since the 1950s. The U.S. and Global Historical Climatology Networks have been used as authoritative sources of recorded surface temperature increases, with some stations having continuous records going back many decades. Satellite radar altimetry data (for example, TOPEX/JASON1, 2 satellite data) have informed the development of the University of Colorado’s 20+ year record of global sea level changes. In the United States, the USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) National Water Information System contains, in some instances, decades of daily streamflow records which inform not only climate but land-use studies as well. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Army Corp of Engineers have maintained data about reservoir levels for decades where applicable. Of course, datasets based on shorter-term observations are used in conjunction with longer-term records for climate ...