Parallel Ocean Program Model Output for Climate Research

POP Version 1.4.3 code from Los Alamos National Laboratory was modified to create the CCSM3.0 climate model component. Output data is distributed via the Earth System Grid for community access. The model incorporates numerous modifications for improved physics and diagnostics while maintaining the original code structure where possible.

Use Cases

• Analyze ocean temperature and salinity fields from the model's 3D grid to study heat content changes.
• Validate simulated sea surface height or current velocity against observational datasets.
• Use time-series output of tracer distributions to investigate biogeochemical cycles in climate models.
• Study the impact of code modifications for CCSM compliance on simulated ocean physics.
• Extract boundary condition data from POP output to force regional ocean or atmospheric models.

Strengths

• Model is based on the established POP Version 1.4.3 developed at a national laboratory.
• Code includes modifications for improved physics and added diagnostics.

Limitations

• Specific output variables, spatial resolution, temporal coverage, and data volume are unknown.
• The relationship between this specific model version and other CCSM3 components may require expert knowledge.

Provenance

Source

Earth System Grid (ESG), sourced from the CCSM3.0 project.

Collection Method

Output from the Parallel Ocean Program (POP) numerical model simulation.

Geography

Global ocean coverage, specific grid resolution unknown.