Exploring the ability of the variable-resolution Community Earth System Model to simulate cryospheric–hydrological variables in High Mountain Asia
-
Published:2023-09-05
Issue:9
Volume:17
Page:3803-3828
-
ISSN:1994-0424
-
Container-title:The Cryosphere
-
language:en
-
Short-container-title:The Cryosphere
Author:
Wijngaard René R.ORCID, Herrington Adam R., Lipscomb William H.ORCID, Leguy Gunter R.ORCID, An Soon-IlORCID
Abstract
Abstract. Earth system models (ESMs) can help to improve the understanding of climate-induced cryospheric–hydrological impacts in complex mountain regions, such as High Mountain Asia (HMA). Coarse ESM grids, however, have difficulties in representing cryospheric–hydrological processes that vary over short distances in complex mountainous environments. Variable-resolution (VR) ESMs can help to overcome these limitations through targeted grid refinement. This study investigates the ability of the VR Community Earth System Model (VR-CESM) to simulate cryospheric–hydrological variables such as the glacier surface mass balance (SMB) over HMA. To this end, a new VR grid is generated, with a regional grid refinement up to 7 km over HMA. Two coupled atmosphere–land simulations are run for the period 1979–1998. The second simulation is performed with an updated glacier cover dataset and includes snow and glacier model modifications. Comparisons are made to gridded outputs derived from a globally uniform 1∘ CESM grid, observation-, reanalysis-, and satellite-based datasets, and a glacier model forced by a regional climate model (RCM). Climatological biases are generally reduced compared to the coarse-resolution CESM grid, but the glacier SMB is too negative relative to observation-based glaciological and geodetic mass balances, as well as the RCM-forced glacier model output. In the second simulation, the SMB is improved but is still underestimated due to cloud cover and temperature biases, missing model physics, and incomplete land–atmosphere coupling. The outcomes suggest that VR-CESM could be a useful tool to simulate cryospheric–hydrological variables and to study climate change in mountainous environments, but further developments are needed to better simulate the SMB of mountain glaciers.
Funder
National Research Foundation of Korea National Center for Atmospheric Research
Publisher
Copernicus GmbH
Subject
Earth-Surface Processes,Water Science and Technology
Reference108 articles.
1. Bambach, N. E., Rhoades, A. M., Hatchett, B. J., Jones, A. D., Ullrich, P.
A., and Zarzycki, C. M.: Projecting climate change in South America using
variable-resolution Community Earth System Model: An application to Chile,
Int. J. Climatol., 42, 2514–2542,
https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.7379,
2021. 2. Beljaars, A. C. M., Brown, A. R., and Wood, N.: A new parametrization of
turbulent orographic form drag, Q. J. Roy.
Meteor. Soc., 130, 1327–1347, https://doi.org/10.1256/qj.03.73, 2004. 3. Bogenschutz, P. A., Gettelman, A., Morrison, H., Larson, V. E., Craig, C.,
and Schanen, D. P.: Higher-order turbulence closure and its impact on
climate simulations in the community atmosphere model, J. Climate, 26, 9655–9676,
https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-13-00075.1, 2013. 4. Bonekamp, P. N. J., de Kok, R. J., Collier, E., and Immerzeel, W. W.:
Contrasting Meteorological Drivers of the Glacier Mass Balance Between the
Karakoram and Central Himalaya, Front. Earth Sci., 7, 107,
https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2019.00107, 2019. 5. Brodzik, M. J. and Armstrong, R.: Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid 2.0 Weekly
Snow Cover and Sea Ice Extent, Version 4, Boulder, Colorado USA, NASA DAAC
at the National Snow and Ice Data Center [data set],
https://doi.org/10.5067/P7O0HGJLYUQU, 2013.
|
|