Sensitivity of Climate Simulations to Land-Surface and Atmospheric Boundary-Layer Treatments-A Review

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Abstract
Aspects of the land-surface and boundary-layer treatments in some 20 or so atmospheric general circulation models (GCMS) are summarized. In only a small fraction of these have significant sensitivity studies been carried out and published. Predominantly, the sensitivity studies focus upon the parameterization of land-surface processes and specification of land-surface properties—the most important of these include albedo, roughness length, soil moisture status, and vegetation density. The impacts of surface albedo and soil moisture upon the climate simulated in GCMs with bare-soil land surfaces are well known. Continental evaporation and precipitation tend to decrease with increased albedo and decreased soil moisture availability. For example, results from numerous studies give an average decrease in continental precipitation of 1 mm day−1 in response to an average albedo increase of 0.13. Few conclusive studies have been carried out on the impact of a gross roughness-length change—the primary st... Abstract Aspects of the land-surface and boundary-layer treatments in some 20 or so atmospheric general circulation models (GCMS) are summarized. In only a small fraction of these have significant sensitivity studies been carried out and published. Predominantly, the sensitivity studies focus upon the parameterization of land-surface processes and specification of land-surface properties—the most important of these include albedo, roughness length, soil moisture status, and vegetation density. The impacts of surface albedo and soil moisture upon the climate simulated in GCMs with bare-soil land surfaces are well known. Continental evaporation and precipitation tend to decrease with increased albedo and decreased soil moisture availability. For example, results from numerous studies give an average decrease in continental precipitation of 1 mm day−1 in response to an average albedo increase of 0.13. Few conclusive studies have been carried out on the impact of a gross roughness-length change—the primary st...

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