The CSIRO Mk3L climate system model v1.0 coupled to the CABLE land surface scheme v1.4b: Evaluation of the control climatology

Abstract

The CSIRO Mk3L climate system model, a reduced-resolution coupledgeneral circulation model, has previously been described in thisjournal. The model is configured for millennium scale or multiplecentury scale simulations. This paper reports the impact of replacingthe relatively simple land surface scheme that is the defaultparameterisation in Mk3L with a sophisticated land surface model thatsimulates the terrestrial energy, water and carbon balance in aphysically and biologically consistent way. An evaluation of the newmodel's near-surface climatology highlights strengths and weaknesses,but overall the atmospheric variables, including the near-surface airtemperature and precipitation, are simulated well. The impact of themore sophisticated land surface model on existing variables isrelatively small, but generally positive. More significantly, the newland surface scheme allows an examination of surface carbon-relatedquantities including net primary productivity which adds significantlyto the capacity of Mk3L. Overall, results demonstrate that thisreduced-resolution climate model is a good foundation for exploringlong time scale phenomena. The addition of the more sophisticated landsurface model enables an exploration of important Earth Systemquestions including land cover change and abrupt changes interrestrial carbon storage. © 2011 Author(s).