Constraints on radiative forcing and future climate change from observations and climate model ensembles

The assessment of uncertainties in global warming projections is often based on expert judgement, because a number of key variables in climate change are poorly quantified. In particular, the sensitivity of climate to changing greenhouse-gas concentrations in the atmosphere and the radiative forcing effects by aerosols are not well constrained, leading to large uncertainties in global warming simulations. Here we present a Monte Carlo approach to produce probabilistic climate projections, using a climate model of reduced complexity. The uncertainties in the input parameters and in the model itself are taken into account, and past observations of oceanic and atmospheric warming are used to constrain the range of realistic model responses. We obtain a probability density function for the present-day total radiative forcing, giving 1.4 to 2.4 W m-2 for the 5-95 per cent confidence range, narrowing the global-mean indirect aerosol effect to the range of 0 to -1.2 W m-2. Ensemble simulations for two illustrative emission scenarios suggest a 40 per cent probability that global-mean surface temperature increase will exceed the range predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), but only a 5 per cent probability that warming will fall below that range.     

Indirect radiative forcing of climate change through ozone effects on the land-carbon sink

The evolution of the Earth's climate over the twenty-first century depends on the rate at which anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions are removed from the atmosphere by the ocean and land carbon cycles. Coupled climate-carbon cycle models suggest that global warming will act to limit the land-carbon sink, but these first generation models neglected the impacts of changing atmospheric chemistry. Emissions associated with fossil fuel and biomass burning have acted to approximately double the global mean tropospheric ozone concentration, and further increases are expected over the twenty-first century. Tropospheric ozone is known to damage plants, reducing plant primary productivity and crop yields, yet increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations are thought to stimulate plant primary productivity. Increased carbon dioxide and ozone levels can both lead to stomatal closure, which reduces the uptake of either gas, and in turn limits the damaging effect of ozone and the carbon dioxide fertilization of photosynthesis. Here we estimate the impact of projected changes in ozone levels on the land-carbon sink, using a global land carbon cycle model modified to include the effect of ozone deposition on photosynthesis and to account for interactions between ozone and carbon dioxide through stomatal closure. For a range of sensitivity parameters based on manipulative field experiments, we find a significant suppression of the global land-carbon sink as increases in ozone concentrations affect plant productivity. In consequence, more carbon dioxide accumulates in the atmosphere. We suggest that the resulting indirect radiative forcing by ozone effects on plants could contribute more to global warming than the direct radiative forcing due to tropospheric ozone increases.     

A piecewise-integration method for simulating the influence of external forcing on climate

Climate drift occurs in most general circulation models （GCMs） as a result of incomplete physical and numerical representation of the complex climate system, which may cause large uncertainty in sensitivity experiments evaluating climate response to changes in external forcing. To solve this problem, we propose a piecewise-integration method to reduce the systematic error in climate sensitivity studies. The observations are firstly assimilated into a numerical model by using the dynamic relaxation technique to relax to the current state of atmosphere, and then the assimilated fields are continuously used to reinitialize the simulation to reduce the error of climate simulation. When the numerical model is integrated with changed external forcing, the results can be split into two parts, background and pertur- bation fields, and the background is the state before the external forcing is changed. The piecewise-integration method is used to con- tinuously reinitialize the model with the assimilated field, instead of the background. Therefore, the simulation error of the model with the external forcing can be reduced. In this way, the accuracy of climate sensitivity experiments is greatly improved. Tests with a simple low-order spectral model show that this approach can significantly reduce the uncertainty of climate sensitivity experiments.     

北京地区城市化对辐射强迫的影响估算

能引起城市区域辐射强迫的因素较多,但是目前城市化引起的辐射强迫的相关研究较少.本文利用GLASS 反照率遥感数据和CERES地表短波辐射数据计算了近10年来北京地区城市化过程引起的辐射强迫,讨论了辐射强迫 的空间分布规律及数量统计特征.基于2000、2010年2期的Globeland30土地分类数据提取了城市边缘区,并结合辐射 强迫遥感数据计算了主城核心区、內缘区、各级外缘区的辐射强迫,探究了土地覆盖变化强迫因子、气候等其他强迫因子 的相对贡献大小.结果表明:近10年北京市全区域的辐射强迫为2.52 W·m-2,表现为增温效应,其中土地覆被不变区 域产生的辐射强迫为2.51W·m-2,耕地、林地是2种主要辐射强迫源;土地覆被变化区域产生的辐射强迫为2.67 W· m-2,非植被类型之间的土地覆被变化引起的平均辐射强迫为2.23W·m-2,有植被参与的土地覆被变化区域产生的辐 射强迫为2.95W·m-2;主城核心区的辐射强迫为-1.16W·m-2,表现为降温效应;辐射强迫变化与距离主城区的距离 呈先增大后减小的变化趋势.研究结果可为城市区域的辐射强迫研究提供参考,有助于了解北京市区域气候分布差异      

An abrupt climate event in a coupled ocean-atmosphere simulation without external forcing

Temperature reconstructions from the North Atlantic region indicate frequent abrupt and severe climate fluctuations during the last glacial and Holocene periods. The driving forces for these events are unclear and coupled atmosphere-ocean models of global circulation have only simulated such events by inserting large amounts of fresh water into the northern North Atlantic Ocean. Here we report a drastic cooling event in a 15,000-yr simulation of global circulation with present-day climate conditions without the use of such external forcing. In our simulation, the annual average surface temperature near southern Greenland spontaneously fell 6-10 standard deviations below its mean value for a period of 30-40 yr. The event was triggered by a persistent northwesterly wind that transported large amounts of buoyant cold and fresh water into the northern North Atlantic Ocean. Oceanic convection shut down in response to this flow, concentrating the entire cooling of the northern North Atlantic by the colder atmosphere in the uppermost ocean layer. Given the similarity between our simulation and observed records of rapid cooling events, our results indicate that internal atmospheric variability alone could have generated the extreme climate disruptions in this region.     

Global estimate of aerosol direct radiative forcing from satellite measurements

Atmospheric aerosols cause scattering and absorption of incoming solar radiation. Additional anthropogenic aerosols released into the atmosphere thus exert a direct radiative forcing on the climate system. The degree of present-day aerosol forcing is estimated from global models that incorporate a representation of the aerosol cycles. Although the models are compared and validated against observations, these estimates remain uncertain. Previous satellite measurements of the direct effect of aerosols contained limited information about aerosol type, and were confined to oceans only. Here we use state-of-the-art satellite-based measurements of aerosols and surface wind speed to estimate the clear-sky direct radiative forcing for 2002, incorporating measurements over land and ocean. We use a Monte Carlo approach to account for uncertainties in aerosol measurements and in the algorithm used. Probability density functions obtained for the direct radiative forcing at the top of the atmosphere give a clear-sky, global, annual average of -1.9 W m(-2) with standard deviation, +/- 0.3 W m(-2). These results suggest that present-day direct radiative forcing is stronger than present model estimates, implying future atmospheric warming greater than is presently predicted, as aerosol emissions continue to decline.     

东亚地区人为硫酸盐气溶胶辐射气候效应不同模拟方法的对比

 利用区域气候模式RegCM2与大气化学模式连接的模拟系统,研究了中国地区人为排放生成的硫酸盐气溶胶分布及其辐射气候效应,并与全球模式的结果进行了比较,同时对比了硫酸盐气溶胶辐射气候效应的在线、离线模拟方法所得结果差异的细致情况.通过以上工作表明:区域气候和大气化学耦合模式系统能在比大气环流模式更精细的尺度上获得硫酸盐分布规律和辐射气候效应;并且区域气候模式与大气化学模式的在线与离线连接方法得到的硫酸盐柱含量、有反馈和无反馈大气顶直接辐射强迫和地表温度响应在较小区域平均的尺度上存在较显著的差异,并且在全区域平均尺度上也不能被忽略;通过对气候响应的进一步分析发现:模拟结果显示了从硫酸盐含量到辐射强迫和地表温度响应逐渐加大的不确定性.     

SACOL黑碳和沙尘气溶胶辐射强迫分析

利用兰州大学半干旱气候与环境观测站(SACOL)的太阳光度计资料、AREONET气溶胶光学特性资料,采用辐射传输模式SBDART分析了SACOL典型日个例沙尘气溶胶和黑碳气溶胶的长、短波辐射强迫,探讨了不同地表反照率和天顶角对气溶胶辐射强迫的影响.分析表明,沙尘和黑碳在地表的短波辐射强迫分别是-146.54,-60 W/m~2,长波辐射强迫分别是17.79,8.66 W/m~2,短波辐射强迫是长波的6倍多,沙尘辐射强迫是黑碳的2倍多;在大气层顶沙尘和黑碳短波辐射强迫是39.04,27.2 W/m~2,长波辐射强迫为12.19,5.0 W/m~2.短波辐射强迫随地表反照率的增加而增大,长波辐射强迫随地表反照率的增加线性减小.随天顶角减小,大气层顶的短波辐射强迫线性增加,地面短波辐射强迫对数减小,长波辐射强迫随天顶角的变化很小.     

中国碳气溶胶时空分布与辐射强迫的数值模拟

为了更好地了解我国区域碳气溶胶,利用意大利国际理论物理中心ICTP(International Center forTheoretical Physics)的气溶胶资料和区域气候模式R egCM 3对2000年我国碳气溶胶时空分布与辐射强迫进行了数值模拟。结果表明:我国碳气溶胶主要分布在黄河以南、青藏高原以东的广大区域,且柱含量分布具有明显的季节性。春季最大,冬季次之,夏季最小;除东部沿海等少数地区外,碳气溶胶大气顶辐射强迫在全国绝大部分地区符号均为正,而地表辐射强迫符号为负。各单种气溶胶之间存在复杂的相互作用,研究综合气溶胶分布和气候效应时,不能简单地将各单种气溶胶的作用进行叠加。     

Global warming and climate forcing by recent albedo changes on Mars

For hundreds of years, scientists have tracked the changing appearance of Mars, first by hand drawings and later by photographs. Because of this historical record, many classical albedo patterns have long been known to shift in appearance over time. Decadal variations of the martian surface albedo are generally attributed to removal and deposition of small amounts of relatively bright dust on the surface. Large swaths of the surface (up to 56 million km2) have been observed to darken or brighten by 10 per cent or more. It is unknown, however, how these albedo changes affect wind circulation, dust transport and the feedback between these processes and the martian climate. Here we present predictions from a Mars general circulation model, indicating that the observed interannual albedo alterations strongly influence the martian environment. Results indicate enhanced wind stress in recently darkened areas and decreased wind stress in brightened areas, producing a positive feedback system in which the albedo changes strengthen the winds that generate the changes. The simulations also predict a net annual global warming of surface air temperatures by approximately 0.65 K, enhancing dust lifting by increasing the likelihood of dust devil generation. The increase in global dust lifting by both wind stress and dust devils may affect the mechanisms that trigger large dust storm initiation, a poorly understood phenomenon, unique to Mars. In addition, predicted increases in summertime air temperatures at high southern latitudes would contribute to the rapid and steady scarp retreat that has been observed in the south polar residual ice for the past four Mars years. Our results suggest that documented albedo changes affect recent climate change and large-scale weather patterns on Mars, and thus albedo variations are a necessary component of future atmospheric and climate studies.     

Lons-term variations of solar activity

Using the Lomb-Scargle periodogram we analyzed two sunspot series： the one over the past 11000 years at the 10-year interval based upon the survey data of ^14C concentration in tree-rings, reconstructed by Solanki et al.; and the sunspot number over the past 7000 years, derived from geomagnetic variations by Usoskin et al. We found the periods and quasi-periods in solar activity, such as about 225, 352, 441,522 and 561 a, and near 1000 and 2000 a. An approach of wavelet transform was applied to check the two sunspot time series, with emphasis on investigating time-varying characteristics in the long-term fluctuations of solar activity. The results show that the lengths and amplitudes of the periods have changed with time, and large variations have taken place during some periods.     

Long-term variations of solar activity

Using the Lomb-Scargle periodogram we analyzed two sunspot series: the one over the past 11000 years at the 10-year interval based upon the survey data of 14C concentration in tree-rings, recon- structed by Solanki et al.; and the sunspot number over the past 7000 years, derived from geomagnetic variations by Usoskin et al. We found the periods and quasi-periods in solar activity, such as about 225, 352, 441, 522 and 561 a, and near 1000 and 2000 a. An approach of wavelet transform was applied to check the two sunspot time series, with emphasis on investigating time-varying characteristics in the long-term fluctuations of solar activity. The results show that the lengths and amplitudes of the periods have changed with time, and large variations have taken place during some periods.     

The impact of humidity above stratiform clouds on indirect aerosol climate forcing

Some of the global warming from anthropogenic greenhouse gases is offset by increased reflection of solar radiation by clouds with smaller droplets that form in air polluted with aerosol particles that serve as cloud condensation nuclei. The resulting cooling tendency, termed the indirect aerosol forcing, is thought to be comparable in magnitude to the forcing by anthropogenic CO2, but it is difficult to estimate because the physical processes that determine global aerosol and cloud populations are poorly understood. Smaller cloud droplets not only reflect sunlight more effectively, but also inhibit precipitation, which is expected to result in increased cloud water. Such an increase in cloud water would result in even more reflective clouds, further increasing the indirect forcing. Marine boundary-layer clouds polluted by aerosol particles, however, are not generally observed to hold more water. Here we simulate stratocumulus clouds with a fluid dynamics model that includes detailed treatments of cloud microphysics and radiative transfer. Our simulations show that the response of cloud water to suppression of precipitation from increased droplet concentrations is determined by a competition between moistening from decreased surface precipitation and drying from increased entrainment of overlying air. Only when the overlying air is humid or droplet concentrations are very low does sufficient precipitation reach the surface to allow cloud water to increase with droplet concentrations. Otherwise, the response of cloud water to aerosol-induced suppression of precipitation is dominated by enhanced entrainment of overlying dry air. In this scenario, cloud water is reduced as droplet concentrations increase, which diminishes the indirect climate forcing.     

Observational evidence of a change in radiative forcing due to the indirect aerosol effect

Anthropogenic aerosols enhance cloud reflectivity by increasing the number concentration of cloud droplets, leading to a cooling effect on climate known as the indirect aerosol effect. Observational support for this effect is based mainly on evidence that aerosol number concentrations are connected with droplet concentrations, but it has been difficult to determine the impact of these indirect effects on radiative forcing. Here we provide observational evidence for a substantial alteration of radiative fluxes due to the indirect aerosol effect. We examine the effect of aerosols on cloud optical properties using measurements of aerosol and cloud properties at two North American sites that span polluted and clean conditions-a continental site in Oklahoma with high aerosol concentrations, and an Arctic site in Alaska with low aerosol concentrations. We determine the cloud optical depth required to fit the observed shortwave downward surface radiation. We then use a cloud parcel model to simulate the cloud optical depth from observed aerosol properties due to the indirect aerosol effect. From the good agreement between the simulated indirect aerosol effect and observed surface radiation, we conclude that the indirect aerosol effect has a significant influence on radiative fluxes.     

The importance of the diurnal and annual cycle of air traffic for contrail radiative forcing

Air traffic condensation trails, or contrails, are believed to have a net atmospheric warming effect, although one that is currently small compared to that induced by other sources of human emissions. However, the comparably large growth rate of air traffic requires an improved understanding of the resulting impact of aircraft radiative forcing on climate. Contrails have an effect on the Earth's energy balance similar to that of high thin ice clouds. Their trapping of outgoing longwave radiation emitted by the Earth and atmosphere (positive radiative forcing) is partly compensated by their reflection of incoming solar radiation (negative radiative forcing). On average, the longwave effect dominates and the net contrail radiative forcing is believed to be positive. Over daily and annual timescales, varying levels of air traffic, meteorological conditions, and solar insolation influence the net forcing effect of contrails. Here we determine the factors most important for contrail climate forcing using a sophisticated radiative transfer model for a site in southeast England, located in the entrance to the North Atlantic flight corridor. We find that night-time flights during winter (December to February) are responsible for most of the contrail radiative forcing. Night flights account for only 25 per cent of daily air traffic, but contribute 60 to 80 per cent of the contrail forcing. Further, winter flights account for only 22 per cent of annual air traffic, but contribute half of the annual mean forcing. These results suggest that flight rescheduling could help to minimize the climate impact of aviation.     

Possible solar forcing of climate variability in the past 4000 years inferred from a proxy record at the southern margin of Tarim Basin

A ca. 4000a decadal-resolution climate proxy record of the mean grain-size from a lake (or mash) sediment at the southern margin of the Tarim Basin, correlates visually with the atmospheric 14C record from tree ring (residual △^14C, solar proxy) and the GISP2 ice core δ^18O record (temperature proxy). In general, △^14C maxima (solar minima) are coincident with cold (wet) periods in the study area and cold periods in the Greenland ice core. Power spectrum analysis revealed statistically significant periodicities of 196a, 121a, 97a, 62a, 45a and 33--30a, which are similar to those principal solar-oscillation periods as inferred from the atmospheric radiocarbon and other proxy records. Possible solar forcing is addressed to be the main driving forcing of climate change in the southern margin of Tarim Basin.     

Dusty cloud radiative forcing derived from satellite data for middle latitude regions of East Asia

The dusty cloud radiative forcing over the middle latitude regions of East Asia was estimated by using the 2-year (July 2002?June 2004) data of collocated clouds and the Earth’s radiant energy system (CERES) scanner and moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) from Aqua Edition 1B SSF (single scanner footprint). The dusty cloud is defined as the cloud in dust storm environment or dust contaminated clouds. For clouds growing in the presence of dust, the instantaneous short-wave (SW) forcing at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) is about -275.7 W/m² for cloud over dust (COD) region. The clouds developing in no-dust cloud (CLD) regions yield the most negative short-wave (SW) forcing (-311.0 W/m²), which is about 12.8% stronger than those in COD regions. For long-wave (LW) radiative forcing, the no-dust cloud (CLD) is around 102.8 W/m², which is 20% less than the LW forcing from COD regions. The instantaneous TOA net radiative forcing for the CLD region is about -208.2 W/m², which is 42.1% larger than the values of COD regions. The existence of dust aerosols under clouds significantly reduces the cooling effect of clouds.     

Regional insolation forcing of late Quaternary climate change in the Southern Hemisphere

In agreement with the Milankovitch orbital forcing hypothesis it is often assumed that glacial-interglacial climate transitions occurred synchronously in the Northern and Southern hemispheres of the Earth. It is difficult to test this assumption, because of the paucity of long, continuous climate records from the Southern Hemisphere that have not been dated by tuning them to the presumed Northern Hemisphere signals. Here we present an independently dated terrestrial pollen record from a peat bog on South Island, New Zealand, to investigate global and local factors in Southern Hemisphere climate changes during the last two glacial-interglacial cycles. Our record largely corroborates the Milankovitch model of orbital forcing but also exhibits some differences: in particular, an earlier onset and longer duration of the Last Glacial Maximum. Our results suggest that Southern Hemisphere insolation may have been responsible for these differences in timing. Our findings question the validity of applying orbital tuning to Southern Hemisphere records and suggest an alternative mechanism to the bipolar seesaw for generating interhemispheric asynchrony in climate change.     

混合光谱分解实验研究

混合光谱分解研究对提高遥感识别地物信息精度具有重要意义.实验室模拟混合光谱分解模型可以作为遥感影像混合像元分解的基础,为地物分类提供经验模型和理论依据.对土壤-植被混合模型进行实验室模拟,对原始光谱反射率进行一阶微分、对数、去连续统变换,运用特征波段法和相似系数法拟合回归方程,并对比模型精度.结果表明基于对数变换数据的...