CEM Group PhD student Xiaoning Wu, along with Prof. Kevin Reed, recently published a paper documenting simplified designs of the Community Earth System Model with full atmosphere-ocean interactions (link). Simplified models, such as aquaplanets for the atmosphere or box-shaped models for the ocean, are useful tools to understand the complexity of the Earth’s climate. However, previous models rarely account for the full dynamic interactions between the atmosphere and the ocean. Collaborating with Dr. Wolfe of SoMAS and scientists at NCAR, we have developed two fully coupled baseline designs with simplified ocean set-up. One is nominally ocean‐covered, the other has an additional strip of pole‐to‐pole continent as ocean boundary. These models capture the broad characteristics of the climate system, including the poleward heat transport. Additionally, they provide more details than previous simplified models on processes associated with rainfall, particularly in the tropical region. These capabilities are promising for exploring a range of atmosphere‐ocean interactions, including hurricanes.
