Overview of NOAA’s Arctic Climate Science Activities

Current or Proposed Activities Expected to

Persist in FY2008-2012

NOAA Arctic Climate Science Activities

1. Causes and Impacts of Recent Changes in the Pacific Arctic

2. Arctic Change Detection3. Arctic Atmospheric Observatories for Clouds,

Radiation, Aerosols4. Advances in Satellite Applications for Polar

Studies 5. Polar Atmospheric Chemistry for Ozone

Depletion and Greenhouse Gases

NOAA Arctic Climate Science Activities

6. Decision Support

7. Arctic Climate Modeling

8. Arctic System Reanalysis

9. Data Management

CANADA

CHINA, KOREA, JAPAN

1. Causes and Impacts of Recent Changes in the Pacific Arctic

Automated Drifting Stations Ice Mass Balance buoys

Climate

Land

Ecosystem

Ice

• Data current in September 2004

• Add additional indicators allowing ACIA analyses to be carried into the future

2. Arctic Change Detection http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/detect/

Main Indicators in Arctic Change Detection Website

Highest 1/3Highest 1/3 Middle 1/3Middle 1/3 Lowest 1/3Lowest 1/3

Large Changes in Recent Years

are Highlighted in Red

PUBLIC RELEASE: Nov 9, 2004 -- http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/detect

1970 1980 1990 2000

Fairbanks, Alaska CRN SiteFairbanks, Alaska CRN Site

Improve climate data sets for Alaska by extending theClimate Reference Network to key Alaskan sites

3. Arctic Atmospheric ObservatoriesTo understand the Arctic atmosphere it is necessary to have detailed measurements of clouds, aerosols, radiation, water vapor, surface fluxes, as well as surface and upper air temperature, moisture, and wind measurements.

Clouds and aerosols in the Arctic have a major influence on surface radiation budgets and resulting surface temperatures, ice ablation/melt rates, and the onset of the annual snow melt season.

Major components of an Arctic Atmospheric Observatory are active cloud sensors, passive and in-situ aerosol sensors, broadband radiation fluxes (up and down), surface fluxes, spectral radiometry, and rawinsondes.

Tiksi, Russia

Alert, Canada

Barrow, Alaska

Eureka, Canada

Summit, Greenland

Ny-Alesund, Svalbard

4. Advances in Satellite Applications for Polar Studies

Objectives:• Improve satellite retrieval science and develop new products• Validate satellite products using in situ data collected during IPY• Improve model assimilation of satellite products to improve forecasts

in the high latitudes and globally• Conduct retrospective analyses of satellite data to detect climate

change• Support other projects with satellite products

Polar satellite products help reduce forecast busts globally (MODIS polar winds in this case)

New satellite sounders will provide high vertical resolution of the atmosphere and new spectral information for cloud property retrievals. (Moisture weighting functions shown here)

5. Polar Atmospheric Chemistry for Ozone Depletion and Greenhouse Gases

NOAA will continue atmospheric monitoring at South Pole and Barrow for greenhouse gases, ozone depleting substances, and aerosols, along with laboratory and field research into stratospheric change and ozone destruction and recovery. NOAA will continue its support for cooperative monitoring projects and will welcome IPY scientists.

6. Alaska Regional Climate Decision Support

• Meet continuing demands for decision support in Alaska through an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach• Expand the Regional Integrated Sciences and

Assessments Program and Regional Climate Centers Program

• Integrate it with the NWS regional climate services program and the Alaska State Climatologist

• Collaborate with other Arctic countries to develop broader decision-support efforts and make a lasting contribution to IPY and beyond.

IPY is a unique opportunity to initiate an integrated Climate Regional Decision Support Program integrating monitoring, data services, research, operational service delivery, and customer support.

NCEP

NUMERICAL FORECASTS

TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY ADVECTION AND WINDS

ETL: ARCTIC ATMOSPHERIC OBSERVATORIES

SURFACE ALBEDO AND TEMPERATURE

VALIDATION

FORCING

NESDISTOA IRRADIANCE

AND CLOUD RETRIEVALS

SURFACE RADIATIVE AND

TURBULENT FLUXES;

PRECIPITATION

CLOUD PROPERTIES

Improve the physics of GCMs by taking advantage of the rich data to be derived from the Arctic Atmospheric Observatories and satellites

Test single column models against the observations and apply knowledge gained to improve GCMs

Share integrated dataset with research community

7. IMPROVING CLIMATE MODELS IN THE ARCTIC

GC

M P

HY

SIC

S

GFDL SINGLE COLUMN MODEL

SURFACE VARIABLES AND ATMOSPHERIC

RETRIEVALS

8. Arctic System Reanalysis• “Reanalysis” provides a physically consistent

description of the climate system that can be used to detect change and provide attribution.

• No previous effort has focused on the entire Arctic region, nor have the models been formulated to account for uniquely Arctic processes.

• ASR will include not only atmospheric data and models, but also attempt to include sea ice and upper ocean to account for the tight coupling between them.

• The longer-term goal of the ASR is to evolve to an operational state in which these activities continue indefinitely for climate research and forecasting

9. Data Management

NOAA’s National Data Centers also serve as World Data Centers, a legacy of the 1957-1958 IGY. They and other global WDCs represent an existing infrastructure to build upon to meet IPY data management objectives.

Fundamental goal: Securely archive a baseline against which to assess future change. Ensure that Arctic climate data are accessible and preserved for current and future users.

• Ensure that IPY projects follow IPY Data Committee guidelines. Make compliance simple. Offer tools, tutorials.

• Ensure that standards such as the Open Archival Information System (OAIS) Reference Model and the ISO19115 metadata standard are met

• Serve as clearinghouse and facilitator for data management issues.