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Suarez, M. J.

Publications and source records attributed to Suarez, M. J..

27 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1984

Design for and efficient dynamic climate model with realistic geography

The long term climate sensitivity which include realistic atmospheric dynamics are severely restricted by the expense of integrating atmospheric general circulation models are discussed. Taking as an example models used at GSFC for this dynamic model is an alternative which is of much lower horizontal or vertical resolution. The model of Heid and Suarez uses only two levels in the vertical and, although it has conventional grid resolution in the meridional direction, horizontal resolution is reduced by keeping only a few degrees of freedom in the zonal wavenumber spectrum. Without zonally asymmetric forcing this model simulates a day in roughly 1/2 second on a CRAY. The model under discussion is a fully finite differenced, zonally asymmetric version of the Heid-Suarez model. It is anticipated that speeds can be obtained a few seconds a day roughly 50 times faster than moderate resolution, multilayer GCM's.

Suarez, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Design of coupled ocean-atmosphere experiments

A series of numerical experiments which couple an atmospheric general circulation model to an ocean model in an idealized basin are discussed. The role of ocean atmosphere interactions in the development of anomalous sea surface temperatures during an El Nino event is outlined.

Suarez, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Development and preliminary tests of a new long-wave radiation parameterization

An efficient broad band longwave radiation code for CO2 and H2O and for O3 was developed. There are two bands each in the CO2 and H2O absorption regions, one for the band center and one for the band wings. One band covers O3 absorption and the overlapping H2O continuum. Overlap is also considered in the CO2 region, and there is H2O continuum absorption where applicable. Clouds are considered nonreflecting in the longwave. Therefore partial cover or partial transmission can be allowed for, by considering a cloud fraction at each atmospheric level. A special subroutine was written to allow for maximum or random overlap of clouds that may be used in the future. All algorithms were written with vectorization in mind with identical operations made for all horizontal grid points in a latitude circle. Where possible, operations are carried out covering the vertical grid points as well, yielding long vectors for efficient computations.

HARSHVARDHAN↗
NASA NTRS1984

A note on the temporal behavior of bucket hydrologies

The use of a "canopy' bucket to more accurately represent evapotranspiration over land surfaces is explained. The temporal behavior of the traditional bucket model is compared with one that mimics the effects of interception loss. Results are presented in terms of the spectral response of the parameterization to a hypothetical white noise forcing.

Suarez, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1983

The parameterization of the planetary boundary layer in the UCLA general circulation model - Formulation and results

A planetary boundary layer (PBL) parameterization for general circulation models (GCMs) is presented. It uses a mixed-layer approach in which the PBL is assumed to be capped by discontinuities in the mean vertical profiles. Both clear and cloud-topped boundary layers are parameterized. Particular emphasis is placed on the formulation of the coupling between the PBL and both the free atmosphere and cumulus convection. For this purpose a modified sigma-coordinate is introduced in which the PBL top and the lower boundary are both coordinate surfaces. The use of a bulk PBL formulation with this coordinate is extensively discussed. Results are presented from a July simulation produced by the UCLA GCM. PBL-related variables are shown, to illustrate the various regimes the parameterization is capable of simulating.

Suarez, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Simulation of the planetary boundary layer with the UCLA general circulation model

A planetary boundary layer (PBL) model is presented which employs a mixed layer entrainment formulation to describe the mass exchange between the mixed layer with the upper, laminar atmosphere. A modified coordinate system couples the mixed layer model with large scale and sub-grid scale processes of a general circulation model. The vertical coordinate is configured as a sigma coordinate with the lower boundary, the top of the PBL, and the prescribed pressure level near the tropopause expressed as coordinate surfaces. The entrainment mass flux is parameterized by assuming the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy to be proportional to the positive part of the generation by convection or mechanical production. The results of a simulation of July are presented for the entire globe.

Suarez, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

July simulation by the UCLA general circulation model

Results of a July simulation produced by the UCLA general circulation model are analyzed with a view to improving the model. It is shown that while many features of the July climatology are well reproduced, others, such as the intensity of the jet streams in the upper troposphere, the frequency of cyclogenesis, the structure of the subtropical pressure belt in the Southern Hemisphere, and the precipitation are not well reproduced. It is suggested that the sources of error are related to inadequate vertical and horizontal resolutions, to the choice of upper boundary at 50 mb, to poor representation of topographically forced motions, and to the indirect coupling between the general circulation model and the planetary boundary model. The analysis has led to the introduction of major design changes in the model.

Mechoso, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Description and preliminary results of the 9-level UCLA general circulation model

The 9-level general circulation model, with the upper boundary of 50 mb, is a modification of the earlier 6- and 12-level versions used at UCLA. Two major design changes have been made in an effort to improve the model: (1) a potential enstrophy conserving scheme in the equation of motion has replaced the previous scheme which only conserved enstrophy for nondivergent flow, and (2) the treatment of the planetary boundary layer has been modified by making the predicted planetary boundary layer top a coordinate surface. Experiments with idealized steep mountains have been made to test each of the major modifications, and the model is now ready for general circulation simulation experiments.

Suarez, M. J.↗