The new Earth model
NASA has combined several models of the Earth to create a new picture of how our climate operates. The new system combines models of the atmosphere, ocean, land surface, and sea ice into one framework that promises to improve predictive capabilities for both short-term forecasts like one sees on TV to long-term climate models spanning a century or more.
Under a partnership, groups from NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense and research universities are using ESMF as the standard for coupling their weather and climate models to achieve a realistic representation of the Earth as a system of interacting parts, unifying much of the modeling community. ESMF makes it easier to share and compare alternative scientific approaches from multiple sources, uses remote sensing data more efficiently and eliminates the need for individual agencies to develop their own coupling software.
ESMF allows researchers to combine their efforts to create one comprehensive picture of the Earth. Whereas before, isolated groups worked on one part of the model, ESMF allows them to combine all of the pieces together, which would have been too large an undertaking for any one group to do.
The article goes into detail on how the pieces are layered together to create a cohesive whole.
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