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The ESMDT is headed by John Dunne, Ron Stouffer and Robbie Toggweiler.

• Jun 16, 2008 Initial coupled carbon-climate simulations

• Jan 15, 2008 Progress towards coupled carbon-climate, current issues

• Oct 03, 2007 (Climate success! movement from focus on reproducing CM2p1 climate to achieving stable carbon cycle in that climate)

• Aug 09, 2006 (Progress on ESM2.1 with respect to laboratory wide progress towards CM3/ESM3)

• May 24, 2006 (Progress towards ESM2.1 - ESM2.1U_co2_ov_lm3_v1 available on fms database)

• Feb 22 and Mar 1, 2006 (Plans towards ESM3 and formulation of white paper)

• May 11 and 18, 2005 (ESM2.1U_CO2 third round, configuration and fidelity discussion)

• Apr 20, 2005 (ESM2.1U_CO2 second round, code status, diagnostics discussion)

• Feb 16, 2005 (ESM2.1U_CO2 initial results, code status)

• Dec 08, 2004 (Code status, CM1p5 results, and ocean initialization studies)

• Aug 25, 2004 (Background and Discussion of initialization of ocean carbon system)

• Jul 21, 2004 (Presentations on coupling modules for land and ocean; status of coarse coupled model; status uf land and ocean biogeochemistry)

• Jun 30, 2004 (Agreement on Mission Statement; Decision on configuration of initial development focus)

• Jun 23, 2004 (Summary of report given to lab council; update on land and ocean status; research interests of participants)

This is a combination atmospheric circulation (AM2-Finite Volume at 2 degree resolution, 24 vertical layers), ocean circulation (MOM4 at 1 degree resolution, 50 vertical layers), Land hydrology (LAD) and simple river routing that is the current ESMDT development workhorse that was development by the Coupled Model Development Team headed by Delworth, Stouffer and Rosati to be used in IPCC climate studies. This model is formulated from a subset of the models below, all of which are coded in the Flexible Modeling System infrastructure.

The AM2 structure uses a hybrid vertical coordinate that includes both pressure and terrain-following (i.e. sigma) layers. Its "physical core" (i.e. vertical parameterizations for physical processes) includes formulation of radiation, specific humidity and the effects of clouds. Development of these models is coordinated through the Global Atmospheric Model Development Team, and comes in two varieties of "dynamical core" (i.e. horizontal parameterizations of advection and diffusion):

• B-grid: In this formulation of dynamics, momentum (u,v) points are co-located, but staggered from pressure and tracer points on the Arakawa b-grid, a description of which can be found HERE.
• Finite Volume: This effort is headed by S. J. Lin. In this formulation of dynamics, the horizontal discretization is based on a conservative, flux-form, semi-Lagrangian scheme described by Lin and Rood [Mon. Wea. Rev., 124, 2046-2070, 1996.] and Lin and Rood [Q. J. R. Meteorol. Soc., 123, 2531-2533, 1997]. A description can be found HERE.

• Simple tracer transport: Chemical tracers are transported conservatively through the atmosphere with only surface fluxes in and out as source functions.

• AM2-CHEM: Development of these models is headed by Horowitz, Ginoux and Fiore and coordinated through the Global Atmospheric Model Development Team. This model includes on-line gas-phase and aerosol chemistry. Emissions, chemistry and deposition are based upon the MOZART-2 model [Horowitz et al., 2003; Tie et al., 2004] that are fully documented HERE). The current version of AM2-CHEM includes NOx-ozone-CO-hydrocarbon and aerosol (sulfate, nitrate, carbonaceous, dust) chemistry, consisting of 70 chemical species and 167 chemical and photochemical reactions.

Development of these models is headed by Griffies and Hallberg and coordinated through the Ocean Model Development Team.

• Modular Ocean Model, Version 4 (MOM4): This effort is headed by Griffies. MOM4 is a z-coordinate, volume-conserving model with parameterizations of a free surface, explicit water fluxes, orientation of horizontal diffusion along isopycnal contours (i.e. neutral physics), Gent-McWilliams thickness diffusion, KPP mixed layer, partial cells, multi-dimensional flux limiting advection and other features fully documented HERE.
• Hallberg Isopycnal Model in Fortran (HIMF)This effort is headed by Hallberg. The plan is to convert ocean biogeochemistry into this code once a coupled atm-ocean model is developed with HIM.

Development of these models headed by Dunne, Slater and Sarmiento and coordinated through the Earth System Model Development Team:

• OCMIP2 Biotic: Includes ocmip2 biotic suite of biogeochemical tracers (DIC, ALK, PO4, DOP, O2) forced with surface restoring of PO4 to an observed climatology. Specifically, the model takes climatological fields from the World Ocean Atlas 2001 (PO4) and the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (DIC and ALK) databases and rescales them to follow OCMIP2 protocols, which are strictly adhered to.
• Restoring Biogeochemistry: Includes an extended suite of biogeochemical tracers (DIC, ALK, NO3, NH4, PO4, SiO4, ALK, Fed, DON, DOP, LDOC, O2) forced with surface restoring of PO4, NO3 and SiO4 to the observed monthly climatology from the World Ocean Atlas 2001 (NO3, PO4, SiO4) and the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (DIC, ALK) databases and a surface Fed climatology of J. Dunne after Johnson and Archer (1997). Food web processing in the euphotic zone and remineralization/dissoltion through the ocean interior are handled as in Dunne et al. (in prep). The model includes a treatment of nitrogen fixation/denitrification. Carbon dioxide equilibria and gas exchange follow OCMIP2 protocols.
• Tracers for Ocean Phytoplankton with Allometric Zooplankton (TOPAZ) Biogeochemistry: Includes an explicit ecological model including three phytoplankton groups (small, large/diatoms and diazotrophs), growth limitation by light, temperature and a suite of nutrients including nitrate, ammonia, phosphate, iron and silicate, dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, two kinds of dissolved organic material, O2, nitrogen fixation and denitrification. CO2 gas exchange is function of the biologically and physically forced solubility. Additionally, changes in the vertical distribution of phytoplankton affect heat absorption with climate feedbacks. Food web processing in the euphotic zone and remineralization/dissolution through the ocean interior are handled as in Dunne et al. (in prep). Initialization of the model takes initial climatological fields from the World Ocean Atlas 2001 (NO3, PO4, SiO4) and the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (DIC, ALK) databases. Carbon dioxide equilibria and gas exchange follow OCMIP2 protocols.

Development of these models headed by Milly and coordinated through the Land Model Development Team (internal access only)

• LAnd Dynamics (LAD) soil hydrology model: This is the land model used in CM2 for GFDL's current physical climate change simulations. It includes a spatially-variable "bucket" for water storage. Temperature within soils is vertically-resolved, while temperature in an overlying snowpack layer (if existant) is assumed to be fixed. The thermal and latent heat capacity of soil water is tuned to reproduce diurnal variability.
• LAnd Dynamics 2 (LAD2) soil hydrology model: This effort is ongoing. This is this next generation land model that utilizes a more physically-motivated representation of snow, soils, and river storage capacity currently being developed by Chris Milly. Temperature is vertically resolved in both snow and soils. The thermal and latent heat capacity of water is treated explicity (rather than parameterized). Water storage in soils is handled through a series of finite-volume vertical layers (rather than the single bucket concept of LAD).

Development of these models is headed by Pacala, Sheviakova and Maleshev and coordinated through the Land Model Development Team

• Soil Hydrology and Ecology (SHE) Model: Based on the framework of LAD, this model is capable of simulating the global distribution and functioning of terrestrial carbon sources and sinks as well as the exchange of water and energy between land, vegetation, and atmosphere. The carbon acquired through photosynthesis is balanced by plant respiration and carbon accumulation in leaves, roots, sapwood, and wood. In addition, the model simulates soil carbon pools processes. The land model tracks carbon dynamics of vegetation and soil in response to environmental conditions, ambient concentration of CO2, natural disturbances (e.g. fire), and anthropogenic land use changes (e.g. deforestation and agricultural cropland abandonment). Additionally, changes in the distribution of vegetation structural characteristics affect key land surface parameters such as albedo and surface roughness with climate feedbacks.
• SHE - LAD2 coupling: This effort is ongoing.

Development of these models is headed by Findell and Milly and coordinated through the Land Model Development Team

• Capacitor/transporter Model: Overflow from the soil model empties into a surface/ground water reservior with a spatially-variable timescale of loss. This water loss is then is routed instantaneously through a river network to the ocean.Chemical tracers are transported conservatively
• Explicit River system Model: Surface water, ground water and River segments are treated explicitly with loss rates to the next segment being a function of the amoount of water in them.