Discussion
Started 18th Aug, 2023

CMIP6 grid resolution in km?

What is the standard grid resolution for the CMIP6 model in km?
Is it possible to downscale it to 1x1 km?

Most recent answer

Thank you very much for your take Sean.

All replies (4)

The standard grid resolution for the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) models can vary significantly depending on the specific model and component being used (atmosphere, ocean, land, etc.). CMIP6 models generally have resolutions ranging from coarse (e.g., hundreds of kilometers) to finer scales (e.g., tens of kilometers) for atmosphere and ocean components.
However, downscaling CMIP6 models to a resolution of 1x1 km is generally not feasible or practical due to a few reasons:
  1. Computational Resources: Running global climate models at such high resolutions requires massive amounts of computational power and resources. The computational demands increase significantly as the resolution becomes finer, making it challenging to perform simulations at very high resolutions.
  2. Model Dynamics: Many climate models have physical parameterizations that are designed and tuned for certain resolutions. At extremely high resolutions, these parameterizations might not accurately represent processes occurring at smaller scales, leading to unrealistic simulations.
  3. Data Availability: Generating and managing data at 1x1 km resolution for global simulations would result in vast amounts of data that can be difficult to store, transfer, and analyze effectively.
  4. Model Complexity: Climate models are complex systems that represent a wide range of interacting processes. Increasing the resolution to 1x1 km introduces a level of detail that might not necessarily provide significant benefits in terms of understanding large-scale climate patterns and trends.
In practice, researchers often employ regional climate models (RCMs) or other downscaling techniques to achieve higher resolutions for specific regions of interest while still relying on the outputs of global CMIP6 models as boundary conditions. This approach allows for more detailed analyses of local or regional climate impacts without the computational and practical challenges of running the entire global model at such high resolutions.
Dear Professor Tandon, thank you for your input. In the meantime, I have stumbled across a 1x1 km grid resolution.
At Deutsches Klimarechenzentrum, powered by Max Planck Institue for general interest and curiosity.
1 Recommendation
Sean Patrick Flynn
Walden University
The grid resolution is about 250km within the atmosphere and 100km within the ocean which is typical. The better resolution is 25km in the atmosphere and a range of 8-25km for the ocean. A nominal resolution calculation would be needed to scale down to your preferred size. Note: The nominal resolution calculation needs to be done in python.
1 Recommendation
Thank you very much for your take Sean.

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Will the beginning global climate catastrophe also generate a global biodiversity catastrophe?
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  • Dariusz ProkopowiczDariusz Prokopowicz
In your opinion, will an incipient global climate catastrophe also generate a global biodiversity catastrophe and, therefore, should the two catastrophes be studied simultaneously as closely related?
Increasingly, future global climate catastrophe is being combined with global biodiversity catastrophe in scientific deliberations. Still high civilization's greenhouse gas emissions are causing global warming to accelerate. If nothing changes in this regard, according to the predictions of climatologists, climate geophysicists, ecologists, researchers operating in interdisciplinary areas, etc., in a few decades planet Earth will face a global climate catastrophe, which will result, among other things, in a many times higher frequency and scale of emerging periods of severe drought, heat, forest fires, etc., which will result in the impossibility of human existence on most of the planet's land areas. This will be associated with lack of water, permanently breaking out fires, inability to grow crops, etc. In addition, in these areas, the level of biodiversity of natural ecosystems will decline many times over. To a large extent, most of the planet's biosphere will be affected. The scale of the ongoing mass extinction of many species of flora and fauna, the scale of the current great 6 species extinctions (6 within the history of life on Earth) will increase many times over. The biodiversity of the planet will decrease many times over, that is, what has evolved for hundreds of millions of years as part of the evolution of life on Earth, man will destroy in a relatively short period of a few centuries at most (counting from the period of the first industrial revolution). Therefore, the results of many scientific studies already support the thesis that a global climate catastrophe will also generate a global biodiversity catastrophe, and therefore the two catastrophes should be studied simultaneously as closely related. Do you agree with this thesis? Whether you agree or not then please provide substantive arguments, studies, publications.
In view of the above, I address the following question to the esteemed community of scientists and researchers:
In your opinion, will the beginning global climate catastrophe also generate a global biodiversity catastrophe and, therefore, should the two catastrophes be studied simultaneously as closely related?
Will the beginning global climate catastrophe also generate a global biodiversity catastrophe?
What do you think about this topic?
What is your opinion on this issue?
Please answer,
I invite you all to join the discussion,
Thank you very much,
Best wishes,
Dariusz Prokopowicz
Counting on your opinions, on getting to know your personal opinion, on a fair approach to the discussion of scientific issues, I deliberately used the phrase "in your opinion" in the question.
The above text is entirely my own work written by me on the basis of my research.
In writing this text I did not use other sources or automatic text generation systems.
Copyright by Dariusz Prokopowicz

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