Assessment of a full-field initialized decadal climate prediction system with the CMIP6 version of EC-Earth

Bibliographic Details
Title: Assessment of a full-field initialized decadal climate prediction system with the CMIP6 version of EC-Earth
Authors: R. Bilbao, S. Wild, P. Ortega, J. Acosta-Navarro, T. Arsouze, P.-A. Bretonnière, L.-P. Caron, M. Castrillo, R. Cruz-García, I. Cvijanovic, F. J. Doblas-Reyes, M. Donat, E. Dutra, P. Echevarría, A.-C. Ho, S. Loosveldt-Tomas, E. Moreno-Chamarro, N. Pérez-Zanon, A. Ramos, Y. Ruprich-Robert, V. Sicardi, E. Tourigny, J. Vegas-Regidor
Source: Earth System Dynamics, Vol 12, Pp 173-196 (2021)
Publisher Information: Copernicus Publications, 2021.
Publication Year: 2021
Collection: LCC:Science
LCC:Geology
LCC:Dynamic and structural geology
Subject Terms: Science, Geology, QE1-996.5, Dynamic and structural geology, QE500-639.5
More Details: In this paper, we present and evaluate the skill of an EC-Earth3.3 decadal prediction system contributing to the Decadal Climate Prediction Project – Component A (DCPP-A). This prediction system is capable of skilfully simulating past global mean surface temperature variations at interannual and decadal forecast times as well as the local surface temperature in regions such as the tropical Atlantic, the Indian Ocean and most of the continental areas, although most of the skill comes from the representation of the external radiative forcings. A benefit of initialization in the predictive skill is evident in some areas of the tropical Pacific and North Atlantic oceans in the first forecast years, an added value that is mostly confined to the south-east tropical Pacific and the eastern subpolar North Atlantic at the longest forecast times (6–10 years). The central subpolar North Atlantic shows poor predictive skill and a detrimental effect of initialization that leads to a quick collapse in Labrador Sea convection, followed by a weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and excessive local sea ice growth. The shutdown in Labrador Sea convection responds to a gradual increase in the local density stratification in the first years of the forecast, ultimately related to the different paces at which surface and subsurface temperature and salinity drift towards their preferred mean state. This transition happens rapidly at the surface and more slowly in the subsurface, where, by the 10th forecast year, the model is still far from the typical mean states in the corresponding ensemble of historical simulations with EC-Earth3. Thus, our study highlights the Labrador Sea as a region that can be sensitive to full-field initialization and hamper the final prediction skill, a problem that can be alleviated by improving the regional model biases through model development and by identifying more optimal initialization strategies.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 2190-4979
2190-4987
Relation: https://esd.copernicus.org/articles/12/173/2021/esd-12-173-2021.pdf; https://doaj.org/toc/2190-4979; https://doaj.org/toc/2190-4987
DOI: 10.5194/esd-12-173-2021
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/aad8cb881681497aa875633b2937525b
Accession Number: edsdoj.8cb881681497aa875633b2937525b
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
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More Details
ISSN:21904979
21904987
DOI:10.5194/esd-12-173-2021
Published in:Earth System Dynamics
Language:English