GFDL’s CM2 Global Coupled Climate Models. Part II: The Baseline Ocean Simulation

The current generation of coupled climate models run at the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) as part of the Climate Change Science Program contains ocean components that differ in almost every respect from those contained in previous generations of GFDL climate models. This paper summari...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of climate 2006-03, Vol.19 (5), p.675-697
Main Authors: Gnanadesikan, Anand, Dixon, Keith W., Griffies, Stephen M., Balaji, V., Barreiro, Marcelo, Beesley, J. Anthony, Cooke, William F., Delworth, Thomas L., Gerdes, Rudiger, Harrison, Matthew J., Held, Isaac M., Hurlin, William J., Lee, Hyun-Chul, Liang, Zhi, Nong, Giang, Pacanowski, Ronald C., Rosati, Anthony, Russell, Joellen, Samuels, Bonita L., Song, Qian, Spelman, Michael J., Stouffer, Ronald J., Sweeney, Colm O., Vecchi, Gabriel, Winton, Michael, Wittenberg, Andrew T., Zeng, Fanrong, Zhang, Rong, Dunne, John P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Atmospheric circulation
Atmospheric models
Climate change
Climate models
Climate science
Fluid dynamics
General circulation models
Geophysical fluids
Global climate
Hydrodynamics
Hydrography
Marine
Modelling
Northern Hemisphere
Ocean circulation
Ocean circulation models
Ocean currents
Ocean temperature
Oceanic analysis
Oceans
Radiation
Regional analysis
Regional planning
Salinity
Sea water
Seas
Simulation
Topography
Ventilation
Ventilation systems
Viscosity
Wind stress
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Summary:The current generation of coupled climate models run at the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) as part of the Climate Change Science Program contains ocean components that differ in almost every respect from those contained in previous generations of GFDL climate models. This paper summarizes the new physical features of the models and examines the simulations that they produce. Of the two new coupled climate model versions 2.1 (CM2.1) and 2.0 (CM2.0), the CM2.1 model represents a major improvement over CM2.0 in most of the major oceanic features examined, with strikingly lower drifts in hydrographic fields such as temperature and salinity, more realistic ventilation of the deep ocean, and currents that are closer to their observed values. Regional analysis of the differences between the models highlights the importance of wind stress in determining the circulation, particularly in the Southern Ocean. At present, major errors in both models are associated with Northern Hemisphere Mode Waters and outflows from overflows, particularly the Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea.
ISSN:0894-8755
1520-0442
DOI:10.1175/jcli3630.1