Related topics: climate change , climate
Climate model
hideClimate models use quantitative methods to simulate the interactions of the atmosphere, oceans, land surface, and ice. They are used for a variety of purposes from study of the dynamics of the climate system to projections of future climate.
All climate models take account of incoming energy as short wave electromagnetic radiation (which in this context means visible and ultraviolet, not to be confused with shortwave) to the earth as well as outgoing energy as long wave (infrared) electromagnetic radiation from the earth. Any imbalance results in a change in the average temperature of the earth.
The most talked-about models of recent years have been those relating temperature to emissions of carbon dioxide (see greenhouse gas). These models project an upward trend in the surface temperature record, as well as a more rapid increase in temperature at higher altitudes.
Models can range from relatively simple to quite complex:
This is not a full list; for example "box models" can be written to treat flows across and within ocean basins. Furthermore, other types of modelling can be interlinked, such as land use, allowing researchers to predict the interaction between climate and ecosystems.
For more information about Climate model, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with climate models
Sea Level Rise Due to Global Warming Poses Threat to New York City
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Mar 13, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (138) |
34
(PhysOrg.com) -- Global warming is expected to cause the sea level along the northeastern U.S. coast to rise almost twice as fast as global sea levels during this century, putting New York City at greater ...
Study shows strong evidence that cloud changes may exacerbate global warming
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jul 23, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (56) |
15
The role of clouds in climate change has been a major question for decades. As the earth warms under increasing greenhouse gases, it is not known whether clouds will dissipate, letting in more of the sun's ...
Global warming predictions are overestimated, suggests study on black carbon
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 18, 2008 |
4.3 / 5 (55) |
48
(PhysOrg.com) -- A detailed analysis of black carbon -- the residue of burned organic matter -- in computer climate models suggests that those models may be overestimating global warming predictions.
The Fall of the Maya: 'They Did it to Themselves'
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 07, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (53) |
16
For 1200 years, the Maya dominated Central America. At their peak around 900 A.D., Maya cities teemed with more than 2,000 people per square mile -- comparable to modern Los Angeles County. Even in rural areas ...
Global warming: Our best guess is likely wrong
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jul 14, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (49) |
54
No one knows exactly how much Earth's climate will warm due to carbon emissions, but a new study this week suggests scientists' best predictions about global warming might be incorrect.
Study: Earth more sensitive to carbon dioxide than previously thought
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 06, 2009 |
3.1 / 5 (50) |
91
In the long term, the Earth's temperature may be 30-50% more sensitive to atmospheric carbon dioxide than has previously been estimated, reports a new study published in Nature Geoscience this week.
Oceans' uptake of manmade carbon may be slowing
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 18, 2009 |
3.9 / 5 (25) |
10
The oceans play a key role in regulating climate, absorbing more than a quarter of the carbon dioxide that humans put into the air. Now, the first year-by-year accounting of this mechanism during the industrial ...
Unexpected discovery could impact on future climate models
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Feb 10, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (26) |
11
(PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers have made an unexpected find using a polarimeter (an instrument used to measure the wave properties of light) funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), that ...
Key new ingredient in climate model refines global predictions
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Oct 09, 2009 |
3.6 / 5 (23) |
28
For the first time, climate scientists from across the country have successfully incorporated the nitrogen cycle into global simulations for climate change, questioning previous assumptions regarding carbon feedback and potentially ...
Dust plays larger than expected role in determining Atlantic temperature
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Mar 26, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (17) |
13
(PhysOrg.com) -- The recent warming trend in the Atlantic Ocean is largely due to reductions in airborne dust and volcanic emissions during the past 30 years, according to a new study.
Past regional cold and warm periods linked to natural climate drivers
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 26, 2009 |
3.8 / 5 (19) |
31
Intervals of regional warmth and cold in the past are linked to the El Niño phenomenon and the so-called "North Atlantic Oscillation" in the Northern hemisphere's jet stream, according to a team of climate scientists. These ...
Climate models confirm more moisture in atmosphere attributed to humans
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Aug 10, 2009 |
3.1 / 5 (22) |
64
(PhysOrg.com) -- When it comes to using climate models to assess the causes of the increased amount of moisture in the atmosphere, it doesn't much matter if one model is better than the other.
Fire influences global warming more than previously thought
Apr 23, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (12) |
1
Fire's potent and pervasive effects on ecosystems and on many Earth processes, including climate change, have been underestimated, according to a new report.
Tropical zone expanding due to climate change: study
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jul 06, 2009 |
3.2 / 5 (15) |
2
Climate change is rapidly expanding the size of the world's tropical zone, threatening to bring disease and drought to heavily populated areas, an Australian study has found.
Destruction of greenhouse gases over tropical Atlantic
Jun 25, 2008 |
4.3 / 5 (10) |
1
Large amounts of ozone – around 50% more than predicted by the world's state-of-the-art climate models – are being destroyed in the lower atmosphere over the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Published today (26th ...
