The Australian community climate and earth system simulator, ACCESS: Scientific justification and options for system development

Abstract

The Australian Community Climate and Earth System Simulator (ACCESS) is a coupled climate and earth system simulator being developed as a joint initiative of the Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO in cooperation with the university community in Australia. The main aim of ACCESS is to develop a national approach to climate and weather prediction model development. Planning for ACCESS development commenced in 2005 and significant progress has been made subsequently. This paper provides an account of the scientific justification of the scope and options considered for ACCESS development.