World Climate Research Programme (WCRP)

Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre (BMRC)

WORKSHOP ON SYSTEMATIC ERRORS

16-20 October 2000

at the Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne, Australia

The WCRP Working Group on Numerical Experimentation (WGNE) and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre (BMRC) will host a Workshop on Systematic Errors in October this year in Melbourne, Australia. The last meeting on this subject was held in Toronto, Canada in 1988, and the aim of the 2000 Workshop is to review progress since then, and to consider future directions.

Systematic errors continue to limit the effectiveness of atmospheric models in almost all applications. The Workshop will address issues such as mean errors and their evolution in atmospheric models, with emphasis on the sensitivity of systematic errors either to parameterisations or resolution within a single model, or as a function of different models (e.g. AMIP-2 or similar studies). Summaries of standard measures of systematic errors of a single model 'climate' could be presented as posters. In addition to ensemble and time-mean errors, systematic errors in variability will also be addressed.

An important session will focus on alternative approaches aimed at providing new insights into the nature of, and hypotheses as to the cause of systematic errors (many of which have persisted through years of model developments), and to discuss ways of moving beyond the traditional time-mean (or ensemble-mean) approach. Analyses based on individual models would be appropriate here for the purposes of demonstration. Additional studies of diagnostics of initial model tendencies, analysis increments, use of adjoints, flow dependence of errors, etc. are encouraged.

Although the emphasis of the Workshop is on atmospheric models, studies on the atmospheric component of coupled models will be included in the program.

It is intended to include sessions on errors in mean circulation, fluxes, clouds and variability with invited talks in each. A discussion session is also planned. Poster sessions will be social occasions where possible.

INSTITUTIONS INVOLVED

Scientists from the following institutions (and others) will participate:

• Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia
• University of Reading Department of Meteorology, UK
• The Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, UK Met Office
• PCMDI/LLNL, Livermore, CA, USA
• European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts, Reading, Berks., UK
• Météo-France / CNRM, Toulouse, France
• NIMH, Bucharest, Romania
• LASG/ Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Beijing, China
• CDC / NOAA/ CIRES, Boulder, CO, USA
• DAO/ Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
• CPTEC/ INPE Sao Paulo, Brazil
• NOAA Aeronomy Lab, Boulder, CO, USA
• NCEP, NWS, Washington DC, USA

AGENDA Please click here for the Workshop Agenda. Please note that it is provisional only and is subject to change.

CLIMATE IN MELBOURNE DURING OCTOBER

The Bureau has a great deal of climate information for Australia at http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/

Specifically for Melbourne in October: some selected statistics:

Temperatures

Average maximum and minimum temperatures for the month are 19.6^OC and 9.4^OC. The highest temperature recorded in October in Melbourne is 36.9^OC.

Rainfall

The average monthly rainfall is 67.7 mm. Decile 1 and decile 9 values are 27.4 and 111.7 mm. The mean number of raindays is 14.2.

Cloud and sunshine

The average daily number of sunshine hours for Melbourne in October is 5.9. For the month, the average number of clear days is 3.2 and there are - on average - 13.6 cloudy days.
 

For specific queries please contact either:

Dr Kamal Puri

(Chair of Local Organising Committee)

BMRC

GPO Box 1289

Melbourne

Vic.3001

Australia

Tel: (+ 61 3) 9669 4433

Email: k.puri@bom.gov.au
 
 

Dr Martin Miller

(Chair of Scientific Organising

Committee)

ECMWF

Shinfield Park

Reading

Berks RG2 9AX

United Kingdom

Tel: (+ 44 118) 949 9070

Email: m.miller@ecmwf.int