GCM-Reality Intercomparison Project for SPARC (GRIPS)

Contact: Steve Pawson

The GCM-Reality Intercomparison Project for SPARC (GRIPS) is an international activity, contributing the project "Stratospheric Processes and their Role in Climate" (SPARC), which is organized by the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP). The basic question that GRIPS is answering is: How well do current middle atmosphere-climate models perform? GRIPS has developed studies on three levels to address this question. The level-1 activities involve analyses of model runs, asking how well different features of the climate system are represented. The models include representations of all physical processes that are known to be important; the level-2 GRIPS activities are examining how well these representations (or parametrizations) perform. Finally, the level-3 activities ask how perturbations in the stratospheric climate (due to, say, ozone change, the presence of volcanic aerosols, or solar activity variations) impact the troposphere. About 13 modeling groups participate in GRIPS, along with several scientists who contribute their knowledge of and interest about different components of the middle atmosphere and climate system.

References:

  • T. Horinouchi, S. Pawson, K. Shibata, U. Langematz, E. Manzini, M. A. Giorgetta, F. Sassi, R.J. Wilson, K.P. Hamilton, J. de Granpre, and A. A. Scaife, 2002: Tropical cumulus convection and upward propagating waves in middle atmospheric GCMs. J. Atmos. Sci., submitted.
  • S. Pawson, K. Kodera, K. Hamilton, T.G. Shepherd, S.R. Beagley, B.A. Boville, J.D. Farrara, T.D.A. Fairlie, A. Kitoh, W.A. Lahoz, U. Langematz, E. Manzini, D.H. Rind, A.A. Scaife, K. Shibata, P. Simon, R. Swinbank, L. Takacs, R.J. Wilson, J.A. Al-Saadi, M. Amodei, M. Chiba, L. Coy, J. de Grandpre, R.S. Eckman, M. Fiorino, W.L. Grose, H. Koide, J.N. Koshyk, D. Li, J. Lerner, J.D. Mahlman, N.A. McFarlane, C.R. Mechoso, A. Molod, A. O'Neill, R.B. Pierce, W.J. Randel, R.B. Rood, and F. Wu, 2000: The GCM-Reality Intercomparison Project for SPARC: Scientific Issues and Initial Results. Bull. Am. Meteor. Soc., 81, 781-796.