Skip to main content
Log in

Regional climate modelling

  • Published:
Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Summary

Regional climate modelling is becoming increasingly popular. The most common technique employs high resolution limited-area models to economically produce detaited climatologies for selected regions. A short review is presented of the underlying principles, recent simulations limitations of the method and future prospects.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Arakawa, A., 1972:Design of the UCLA general circulation model. Numerical Simulation of Weather and Climate. Technical Report No. 7, Dept. of Meteorology, University of California, Los Angeles

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhaskaran, B., Jones, R. G., Murphy, J. M., Noguer, M., 1996: Simulations of the Indian summer monsoon using a nested regional climate model: domain size experiments.Climate Dyn.,12, 573–587

    Google Scholar 

  • Cress, A., Majewski, D., Podzun, R., Renner, V., 1995: Simulation of European climate with a limited area model. Part I: Observed boundary conditions.Contrib. Atmos. Phys.,68, 161–178.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cubasch, U., Waszkewitz, J., Hegerl, G. C., Perlwitz, J., 1995: Regional climate changes as simulated in time-slice experiments. Report No. 153, Max-Planck-Institut für Meteorologie, Bundestr. 55, Hamburg, Germany.

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies, H. C., 1976: A lateral boundary formulation for multi-level prediction models.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc.,102, 405–418.

    Google Scholar 

  • Déqué, M., Piedlievre, J. Ph., 1995: High resolution climate simulation over Europe.Climate Dyn. 11, 321–339.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dickinson, R. E., Errico, R. M., Giorgi, F., Bates, G. T., 1989: A regional climate model for the western United States.Clim. Change,15, 383–422.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gates, L. W. 1992: AMIP: the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project.Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc.,73, 1962–1970.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., 1990: Simulation of regional climate using a limited area model nested in a general circulation model.J. Climate,3, 941–963.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., 1991: Sensitivity of simulated summertime precipitation over the western United States to different physics parameterizations.Mon. Wea. Rev.,119, 2870–2888.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., 1995: Perspectives for regional earth system modeling.Global and Planetary Change,10, 23–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Marinucci, M. R., 1996: Improvements in the simulation of surface climatology over the European region with a nested modeling system.Geophys. Res. Lett.,23, 273–276.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Mearns, L. O., 1991: Approaches to the simulation of regional climate change: a review.Rev. Geophys.,29, 191–216.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Marinucci, M. R., Visconti, G., 1992: A 2XCO2 climate change scenario over Europe generated using a limited area model nested in a general circulation model. 2. Climate change scenario.J. Geophys. Res.,97, 10011–10028.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Bates, G. T., Nieman, S. J., 1993a: The multiyear surface climatology of a regional atmospheric model over the western United States.J. Climate,6, 75–95.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Marinucci, M. R., Bates, G. T., 1993b: Development of a second-generation regional climate model (RegCM2). Part I: Boundary-layer and radiative transfer processes.Mon. Wea. Rev.,121, 2794–2813.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Marinucci, M. R., Bates, G. T., DeCanio, G., 1993c: Development of a second-generation regional climate model (RegCM2). Part II: Convective processes and assimilation of lateral boundary conditions.Mon. Wea. Rev.,121, 2814–2832.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giorgi, F., Brodeur, C. S., Bates, G. T., 1994: Regional climate change scenarios over the United States produced with a nested regional climate model.J. Climate,7, 375–399.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirakuchi, H., Giorgi, F., 1995: Multiyear present-day and 2×CO2 simulations of monsoon climate over eastern Asia and Japan with a regional climate model nested in a general circulation model.J. Geophys. Res.,100, 21105–21125.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horel, J. D., Pechmann, J. B., Hamann, A. N., Geisler, J. E., 1994: Simulations of the Amazon Basin circulation with a regional model.J. Climate,7, 56–71.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hostetler, S. W., Giorgi, F., Bates, G. T., Bartlein, P. J., 1994: Lake-atmosphere feedbacks associated with paleolakes Bonneville and Lahontan.Science,263, 665–668.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, R. G., Murphy, J. M., Noguer, M., 1995: Simulation of climate change over Europe using a nested regional-climate model. I: Assessment of control climate, including sensitivity to location of lateral boundaries.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc.,121, 1413–1449.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, R. G., Murphy, J. M., Noguer, M., Keen, A. B., 1996: Simulation of climate change over Europe using a nested regional-climate model. II: Comparison of driving and regional model responses to a doubling of carbon dioxide.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc. (submitted).

  • Juang, H.-M. H., Kanamitsu, M., 1994: The NMC nested regional spectral model.Mon. Wea. Rev.,122, 3–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kida, H., Koide, T., Sasaki, H., Chiba, M., 1991: A new approach for coupling a limited area model to a GCM for regional climate simulations.J. Meteor. Soc. Japan,69, 723–728.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishnamurti, T. N., Ramanathan, Y., Pan, H-L., Pasch, R. J., Molinari, J. 1980: Cumulus parameterization and rainfall tates I.Mon. Wea. Rev.,108, 465–472.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuo, H. L., 1974: Further studies of the parameterization of the influence of cumulus convection on large-scale flow.J. Atmos. Sci.,31, 1232–1240.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leung, L. R., Wigmosta, M. S., Ghan, S. J., Epstein, D. J., Vail, L. W., 1996: Application of a subgrid orographic precipitation/surface hydrology scheme to a mountain Watershed.J. Geophys. Res.,101, 12803–12817.

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu, Y., Giorgi, F., Washington, W. M., 1994: Simulation of summer monsoon clinate over east Asia with an NCAR regional climate model.Mon. Wea. Rev.,122, 2331–2348.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lüthi, D., Cress, A., Davies, H. C., Frei, C., Schär, C., 1996: Interannual variability and regional climate simulations.Theor. Appl. Climatol.,53, 185–209.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lynth, A. H., Chapman, W. L., Walsh, J. E., Weller, G., 1995: Development of a regional climate model of the western Arctic.J. Climate,8, 1555–1570.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marinucci, M. R., Giorgi, F., 1992: A 2XCO2 climate change scenario over Europe generated using a limited area model nested in a general circulation model 1. Present-day seasonal climate simulation.J. Geophys. Res.,97, 9989–10009.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marirucci, M. R., Giorgi, F., Beniston, M., Wild, M., Tschuck, P., Ohmura, A., Bernasconi, A., 1995: High resolution simulations of January and July climate over the western alpine region with a nested regional modeling system.Theor. Appl. Climatol.,51, 119–138.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGregor, J. L., Walsh, K. 1993: Nested simulations of perpetual January climate over the Australian region.J. Geophys. Res.,98, 23283–23290.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGregor, J. L., Walsh, K., 1994: Climate change simulations of Tasmanian precipitation using multiple nesting.J. Geophys. Res.,99, 20889–20905.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGregor, J. L., Walsh, K. J., Katzfey, J. J., 1993: Nested modelling for regional climate studies. In: Jakeman, A. J., Beck, M. B., McAleer, M. J. (eds.)Modelling Change in, Environmental Systems. Chichester: John Wiley, pp. 367–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mearns L. O., Giorgi, F., McDaniel, L., Shields, C. 1995a: Analysis of daily variability of precipitation in a nested regional climate model: comparison with observations and doubled CO2 results.Global and Planetary Change,10, 55–78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mearns, L. O., Giorgi, F., McDaniel, L., Shields, C., 1995b: Analysis of variability and diurnal range of daily temperature in a nested regional climate model: comparison with observations and doubled CO2 results.Climate Dyn. 11, 193–209.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paegle, J., Paegle, J. N., Lewis, F. P., 1983: Large-scale motions of the tropics in observations and theory.Pageoph,121, 948–982.

    Google Scholar 

  • Podzun, R., Cress, A., Majewski, D., Renner, V., 1995: Simulation of European climate with a limited area model. Part II. AGCM boundary conditions.Contrib. Atmos. Phys.,68, 205–225.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rasch, P. J., Boville, B. A., Brasseur, G. P., 1995: A threedimensional general circulation model with coupled chemistry for the middle atmosphere.J. Geophys. Res.,100, 9041–9071.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sasaki, H., Kida, H., Koide, T., Chiba, M., 1995: The performance of long-term integrations of a limited area model with the spectral boundary coupling method.J. Meteor. Soc. Japan,73, 165–181.

    Google Scholar 

  • Semazzi, F. H. M., Lin, N-H., Lin, Y-L., Giorgi, F., 1993: A nested model study of the Sahelian climate response to sea-surface temperature anomalies.Geophys. Res. Lett.,20, 2897–2900.

    Google Scholar 

  • Takle, E. S., 1995: Project to intercompare regional climate simulations (PIRCS), preliminary workshop, 17–18 November 1994.Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc,76, 1625–1626.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vukicevic, T., Paegle, J., 1989: The influence of one-way interacting lateral boundary conditions upon predictability of flow in bounded numerical models.Mon. Wea. Rev.,117, 340–350.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, K., McGregor, J. L., 1995: January and July climate simulations over the Australian region using a limited area model.J. Climate,8, 2387–2403.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, K., McGregor, J. L., 1996a: Simulations of Antarctic climate using a limited area model.J. Geophys. Res.,101, 19093–19108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, K., McGregor, J. L., 1996b: An assessment of simulations of climate variability over Australia with a limited area model.Int. J. Climatol. (in press).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

With 4 Figures

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

McGregor, J.L. Regional climate modelling. Meteorl. Atmos. Phys. 63, 105–117 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01025367

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01025367

Keywords

Navigation