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Research Elements & Cross-cutting Activities
Observing and Monitoring the Climate System |
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Updated 16 September 2008
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Observing and Monitoring the Climate System |
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Observing and Monitoring the Climate SystemOverview CCSP / USGCRP Observations and Monitoring Working Group Members
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Two overarching questions are identified in the CCSP Strategic Plan for “Observing and Monitoring the Climate System” and “Data Management and Information”. These questions continue to offer guidance to these elements of the program:
High-quality, long-term observations of the global environment are essential for defining the current state of the Earth’s environmental system, its history, and its variability. This task requires both space- and surface-based observation systems. Climate observations encompass a broad range of environmental observations, including (1) routine weather observations, which are collected consistently over a long period of time; (2) observations collected as part of research investigations to elucidate processes that contribute to maintaining climate patterns or their variability; (3) highly precise, continuous observations of climate system variables collected for the express purpose of documenting long-term (decadal to centennial) change; and (4) observations of climate proxies, collected to extend the instrumental climate record to remote regions and back in time.
The United States contributes to the development and operation of several global observing systems, both research and operational, that collectively provide a comprehensive measure of climate system variability and climate change processes. These systems are a baseline Earth-observing system and include NASA, NOAA, and USGS Earth-observing satellites and extensive in situ observational capabilities. CCSP also supports several ground-based measurement activities that provide the data used in studies of the various climate processes necessary for better understanding of climate change. U.S. observational and monitoring activities contribute significantly to several international observing systems, including the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) principally sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO); the Global Ocean Observing System sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC); and the Global Terrestrial Observing System sponsored by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. The latter two have climate-related elements being developed jointly with GCOS. A specific subset of the GCOS observing activities for 2007 and 2008 (and into 2009) are the CCSP-sponsored polar climate observations made in cooperation with the International Polar Year (IPY). During 2009, IPY will come to a formal conclusion; however, many polar observing systems will continue to operate. Several agencies are working together to establish an Arctic Observing Network that will build on systems deployed during IPY and provide for coordinated efforts to sustain key climate observations. This cooperation will extend to international partners to encourage a pan-Arctic approach to observation and data sharing. Remotely sensed observations continue to be a cornerstone of CCSP. The Cloud- Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) lidar and CloudSat radar instruments are providing an unprecedented examination of the vertical structure of aerosols and clouds over the entire Earth. These data—when combined with data from the Aqua, Aura, and Parasol satellites orbiting in formation (the “ATrain”)— will enable systematic pursuit of key issues including the effects of aerosols on clouds and precipitation, the strength of cloud feedbacks, and the characteristics of difficult-to-observe polar clouds. The increasing volume of data from remote-sensing and in situ observing systems presents a continuing challenge for CCSP agencies to ensure that data management systems are able to handle the expected increases.
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CCSP provides active stewardship of observations that document the evolving state of the climate system, that allow for improved understanding of its changes, and that contribute to an improved predictive capability for society. Some of these observations are not part of the CCSP budget (e.g., operational satellites such as NPOESS) but are crucial to its success. A core CCSP activity is U.S. participation in the broad-based strategy of the international Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) in monitoring atmospheric, oceanic, and terrestrial domains with an appropriate balance of in situ and remotely sensed observations. As the U.S. plan for climate observations moves forward, it strives to build on the GCOS Implementation Plan (see 
