Lecture: Tuesday, 10-12; Prof. Dr. Gerrit Lohmann; Dr. Martin Werner

Description

This lecture will give an overview about the climate system and its changes during the past, focussing on the last few million years. We begin by describing the external astronomical forcing of the climate system and the observed response, as represented by proxy evidence for paleoclimatic variations. The main components and processes of the climate system, as well as available different dating and analyses methods for paleoclimate research will be explained. Key paleoclimate archives, e.g. ice cores, marine sediment cores and different terrestrial records, will be discussed. The general overview will be supplemented by a presentation of some of the latest research results and most important open questions within the related fields of paleoclimate research. We will show that the past climate dynamics broadens our view of the climate system in general, including the positive and negative feedbacks determining climate sensitivity. Such an approach is necessary to put our recent and expected future climate change into a long-term perspective.



German Version:

Diese Vorlesung gibt einen Überblick über das Klimasystem und seiner Veränderungen in der Vergangenheit. Wir beginnen mit der Beschreibung des äußeren astronomischen Antriebs des Klimasystems und der beobachteten Reaktion, die in Umweltarchiven beobachtet wurden. Die Hauptkomponenten und -prozesse des Klimasystems sowie verschiedene Datierungs- und Analysemethoden für die Paläoklimaforschung werden erläutert. Wichtige Klimaarchive, z.B. Eisbohrkerne, marine Sedimentbohrkerne und verschiedene terrestrische Aufzeichnungen werden diskutiert. Es wird gezeigt, dass die langfristige Klimadynamik unsere Sicht auf das Klimasystem im Allgemeinen erweitert, einschließlich der positiven und negativen Rückkopplungen, die für die Stabilität des Klimas wichtig sind. Wir stellen weiterhin da, wie sich die letzten Dekaden und die erwarteten künftigen Klimawechsel in eine langfristige Perspektive einordnen.



Content

feedback mechanisms in the climate system; the role of the global atmosphere and ocean circulation for long-term climate change; Holocene climate; Climate modes like ENSO and NAO; deglaciation; Glacial climate; Milankovitch theory of the ice ages; Cenozoic climate changes; Biogeochemical cycles; Proxy data; Isotopes

Learning outcome

Advanced knowledge of the climate system, applications in the fields of climate. Programming skills and usage of the climate data operators. Practicals complement the lessons.

Formalities

Code no. 01-01-03-CliS2-V

StudIP

Assignment to study programmes: Optional compulsory for MSc Environmental Physics, for MSc Physik (Umweltphysik), MSc Space Sciences and Technologies (Physics for Space Observations)

Workload /credit points: 3 CP, 90 h

• lecture: 28 h (2h x 14 weeks)

• repeating the lectures/learning/reading: 28 h (2h x 14 weeks)

• example homework: 24 h (6 x 4h)

• additional preparation for exam: 10 h

Course and examination performance

Course achievements:

We require active participation with at least one time showing a solution in the chat room. Working in study groups is encouraged, but each student is responsible for his/her own solution. The solution is typewritten (e.g. with LaTex, Rmarkdown, or word), we allow up to 3 persons to be listed on a solution sheet.

Examination achievements:

You have to pass the oral exam. Room: see below (20-25 min)

The exam is based on the the general content of the lecture and exercises. The procedure follows the rules of pep.

Time table

1) Oct 19 Challenges of climate change (GL)

Content: Intro and warming up, climate change, consequences

 

Oct 26: no lecture

 

2) Nov 2 Global water cycle (MW)

– > shifted because of illness

 

3) Nov 9 Ice Ages and Astronomical theory (GL)

Content: Basics in astronomy (Keppler’s laws), Orbital parameters, Dynamics of ice ages, Termination, Mid-Pleistocene transition

Overview articles by A. Berger, Labeyrie et al., Wally, GL, wikipedia

Link to the physics experiment with a gyro

Here is Exercise 1 “Tropic of Cancer” to be submitted to GL until Nov 30. Please build groups of 2-3 and send the solutions electronically as pdf, word or LaTex. No handwriting.

 

4) Nov 16 Ice Ages and Astronomical theory (GL)

Content: Earth orbital variations, Glacial-interglacial changes, millennial variability (abrupt climate changes like Heinrich events), Spectrum

Exercise 2 “Earth orbital variations” Rmd file: Orbital_2020.Rmd, data file: ins_data.txt

phython, phython2

 

5) Nov 23 Global water cycle (MW)

Content: Water in the Earth system components, Oxygen Isotopes and ice cores, signature in ice cores, drilling ice cores

 

6) Nov 30 The Last Glacial Maximum (MW)

Content: Climate of the LGM, circulation, reconstructions of atmospheric gas composition

 

7) Dec 7 Biogeochemistrical cycles (MW)

Content: chemical substances, biosphere, turnover times, circulation of chemical nutrients (carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus)

Exercise 3 “Glacial climate” “Glacial climate”

netcdf file: PI.nc, netcdf file: LGM.nc

 

8) Dec 14 Vegetation and dust (MW) digital

Content: Aridity and dust,
vegetation dynamics, land use, terrestrial biosphere

Submission of Exercise 3 “Glacial climate”

 

9) Dec 21 Climate variability and data analysis (GL) digital

Content: Different kind of data: historical, reanalysis, paleoclimate data; Model data; Variability, Atmospheric blocking; NAO, statistical climate reconstructions in the Holocene; Energy balance model

Discussion of Exercises 1 “Tropic of Cancer” and 2 “Earth orbital variations” by students

 
 

no lecture on Dec 28 and Jan 4

 
 

10) Jan 11 The last 100 million years (GL) digital

Content: Cenozoic climate change, Climate warming backwards, Eocene-Oligocene and Miocene transitions, Cretaceous warm planet

Ocean gateways and Greenhouse gases as potential drivers

Energy balance and transport in the atmosphere-ocean system

 

11) Jan 18 Regional and global changes (MW) digital

Content: Regional and global signals: Monsoons, Permafrost

 

Discussion of Exercise 3 “Glacial climate”

 

 

12) Jan 25 Archives of climate change (MW) digital

Content: Carbon from the underground; Permafrost; Archives of climate change

 

Discussion of Exercise 4 “Analysing model data” (CS) digital

 

 

13) Feb 1 The current debate (GL) digital

Climate Change: The scientific debate and uncertainties of climate change projections, scientific controvercies, political and non-scientific debate, carbon footprint

Summary and outlook

Questions about the course and exam

 

 

 

Oral Exam on Feb 8 & 23: this time digital

 


 

Literature:

Bradley, R., Paleoclimatology-Reconstructing climates of the Quaternary,

Saltzman, B., Dynamical Paleoclimatology - A generalized theory of global climate change, Academic Press, San Diego, 2002, 354 pp.

Ruddiman, W.F. Earth’s Climate Past and Future

Paleoclimate, Global Change and the Future, 2003 Keith D. Alverson, Raymond S. Bradley, Thomas F. Pedersen(Editors)

Broecker, W. S.,THE GLACIAL WORLD ACCORDING TO WALLY

Storch and Zwiers, 1999: Statistical analysis in climate reasearch. Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-45071-3 StorchZwiers_book.pdf book review frontmatter

Mudelsee M (2014) Climate Time Series Analysis: Classical Statistical and Bootstrap Methods. Second edition. Springer, Cham Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London; xxxii + 454 pp. ISBN: 978-3-319-04449-1, link link2

 
 
 
 

Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy

 
 

One-dimensional EBM (link) This notebook is part of The Climate Laboratory by Brian E. J. Rose, University at Albany.

 
 

The Warming Papers: The Scientific Foundation for the Climate Change Forecast David Archer and Raymond Pierrehumbert (Eds.). Book about Global warming papers: Global warming is arguably the defining scientific issue of modern times, but it is not widely appreciated that the foundations of our understanding were laid almost two centuries ago with the postulation of a greenhouse effect by Fourier in 1827. The sensitivity of climate to changes in atmospheric CO2 was first estimated about one century ago, and the rise in atmospheric CO2 concentration was discovered half a century ago. The fundamentals of the science underlying the forecast for human-induced climate change were being published and debated long before the issue rose to public prominence in the last few decades.

The Warming Papers is a compendium of the classic scientific papers that constitute the foundation of the global warming forecast. The paper trail ranges from Fourier and Arrhenius in the 19th Century to Manabe and Hansen in modern times. Archer and Pierrehumbert provide introductions and commentary which places the papers in their context and provide students with tools to develop and extend their understanding of the subject.

The book captures the excitement and the uncertainty that always exist at the cutting edge of research, and is invaluable reading for students of climate science, scientists, historians of science, and others interested in climate change.