Page History

SLC (Safe Landing Climates) lighthouse is focusing on multidecadal to millennial timescales, organised in 5 themes & Working Groups:

Safe landing pathways (CC scenarios); Understanding HRES events (regimes shift, compound events); Perturbed Carbon cycle (CO2); Water resources (eg. deforestation); Sea Level Rise .

A GEWEX Newsletter article describes the focus. 

DE (Digital Earth) lighthouse focus on Global & Regional information on past, present, future. DE will link existing large scale programmes (& investments). Three main themes & WGs in DE:

1. Fully coupled km scale regional & global (an opportunity for seamlessness between systems, thanks to overlapping resolutions). Regions focus to analyse the DE output (South America, Arctic, connect on RHP) Lead: Cathy Hohenegger (MPI).
   A NCAR workshop on 3-7 October 2022 Boulder (km-scale ESM) 
2. Data assimilation for climate (reanalyses, although most are built in NWP context more than climate, exception NASA built for climate apps). Lead: Aneesh Subramanian (U Colorado)
   A NCAR workshop on 19-20 May (DA4Climate, after US Clivar meeting)
3. Beyond Physical Earth System (include human interactions & impacts). Links to RHP (need co-funding of agencies) & ISIMIP (Inter-Sectoral-Impact) are important. Lead: Andreas Prein (NCAR)

Comment: DE could/should push to endorse, re-groupe & link all storm resolving projects (in EU Nextgems (& Dyamond), Destine Programme, in US, AU).

Comment: A way to overcome initial aversion to DE could be to show added value of new generation of DE models will do (precipitation & hydrological extremes, clouds, wind) to show how they fit the needs.

Comment: Links to ESMO are going to be important to benefit from overlaps.

EPESC (Explaining & Predicting Earth System Change) lighthouse is focusing on the science that enable the design and deployment of integrated capability for quantitative evaluation (observations, early warning, prediction of Earth System changes) at multi-annual to decadal timescales. Three themes & WGs:

1. Observations, modelling, optimal estimation systems 
2. integration of attribution, prediction, projection (anthropogenic & natural). Link to the A2D (Annual to Decadal Outlook), and the the World Weather Attribution Centre (
   WCRP workshop on Attribution Sept 2021
   Co-lead: Doug Smith
3. hazard assessment (different classes of hazard will be considered, with focus on multi-annual)

RIFS (Regional Information for Society) lighthouse is organised in 4 clusters (understanding regional, ...).

RIFS will link with the RHP & GLASS panels, and link to Lighthouses.

RIFS interfaces with CORDEX, and help focus climate change scenarios of farm-scales.

RIFS is completing the chain from GHP/RHP down to users, with elements of social science, socio-economic, communication, impact.

MCR (My Climate Risk) lighthouse is getting into a more mature state. Science plan consolidated. A bottom-up approach to local assessment of climate risk is embraced with people focus (see Rodriguez & Sheperd 2022).

Risk impact is at the interception of hazards, vulnerability and exposure. MCR will adopt the narrative of case studies.

Questions: How the MCR link to existing assessment? (The US National Climate Assessment, mandated by congress, the European State of Climate) and with climate services?

ESMO (Earth System Modelling and Observations)  is a Core Project of WCRP (alike GEWEX) that aims at addressing the overall coordination mechanism across models, data, observations, assimilation. ESMO will encompass and provide an umbrella to several existing panels (WGNE, WGCM, WGSIP, Obs4MIP, S2S, TIRA, and a new ObsPanel?).

ESMO is the natural home to data assimilation & climate reanalysis discussions but it will also include a strong component on the Carbon Cycle current/predicted changes (linking with IG3IS/GAW, IGBP & WGCM carbon communities).

ESMO will interact with external partners in WWRP, GAW, GCOS, GOOS, CEOS/CGMS & Space Agencies, Future Earth Projects (AIMES, SOLAS). 

GEWEX has a clear role in observation stewardship (showcasing usefulness and applications).

Lead: Susann Tegtmeier & Cath Senior

WCRP Academy lighthouse is a marketplace for trainers and trainees of climate information. Aiming at training the future generation of climate scientists. Three thematic areas & WGs:

1. Stocktake (survey availability/needs for training material)
2. Identity & Portal (brand and platform to access)
3. Finance (establish a business model for sustaining the efforts)

The current survey see University as primary recipient. Climate & Climate Change feature highest in the topics. Financial & knowledge barriers currently limit uptakes. Short courses, webinars and summer schools are among favourites (higher ranking than MOOCs).

The platform to deliver the courses is not yet decided. In Paris the Office for Climate Education portal is collecting knowledge & courses. The WMO Global Campus initiative is also aiming at providing education & training material.

A brief update from JSC & secretariat: the new core project structure sees 2 new entries ESMO and RIFS (as detailed above), adding to GEWEX CliC CLIVAR and SPARC. The WCRP grand challenges are sunsetting in 2022. The WCRP Science & Implementation Plan is being drafted. A template to collect Core Projects and LHAs in preparation. A task team on Climate Intervention is being discussed. The GPEX initiative on precipitation is presented. To support the precipitation debate, Figure 21, page 32 from Haiden et al 2021 hHaiden et al. 2021 showed the sizeable advance on QPFs from early 2000s onwards in the headline scores with recent IFS versions are already outperforming ERA5.

The next JSC meeting 27 June 1 July 2022.

The 3rd Pan-GASS meeting will focus on understanding and modelling atmospheric processes, and will take place in Monterey, 25-29 July 2022. There are 4 sessions:

1. Organisation of shallow/deep convection;
2. Surface-Atmosphere interactions and PBL;
3. Cloud systems & associated processes;
4. Towards global km-scale modelling and Digital Twins of Earth System.

Already 180 abstracts received. 10 keynotes (30') + 45 presentations (15'), 3 outbreaks breakout groups.