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Optimized regional climate simulations are conducted using the Polar MM5, a version of the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–NCAR Mesoscale Model (MM5), with a 60-km horizontal resolution domain over North America during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 21 000 calendar years ago), when much of the continent was covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS). The objective is to describe the LGM annual cycle at high spatial resolution with an emphasis on the winter atmospheric circulation. Output from a tailored NCAR Community Climate Model version 3 (CCM3) simulation of the LGM climate is used to provide the initial and lateral boundary conditions for Polar MM5. LGM boundary conditions include continental ice sheets, appropriate orbital forcing, reduced CO2 concentration, paleovegetation, modified sea surface temperatures, and lowered sea level. Polar MM5 produces a substantially different atmospheric response to the LGM boundary conditions than CCM3 and other recent GCM simulations. In particular, from November to April the upper-level flow is split around a blocking anticyclone over the LIS, with a northern branch over the Canadian Arctic and a southern branch impacting southern North America. The split flow pattern is most pronounced in January and transitions into a single, consolidated jet stream that migrates northward over the LIS during summer. Sensitivity experiments indicate that the winter split flow in Polar MM5 is primarily due to mechanical forcing by LIS, although model physics and resolution also contribute to the simulated flow configuration. Polar MM5 LGM results are generally consistent with proxy climate estimates in the western United States, Alaska, and the Canadian Arctic and may help resolve some long-standing discrepancies between proxy data and previous simulations of the LGM climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present-day Arctic and Antarctic climate of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Community Climate Model version 3 (CCM3) is presented. The CCM3 simulation is from a prescribed and interannually varying sea surface temperature integration from January 1979 through August 1993. Observations from a variety of sources, including the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts analyses, rawinsonde, and surface station data, are used for validation of CCM3's polar climate during this period. Overall, CCM3 can simulate many important polar climatic features and in general is an incremental improvement over CCM2. The 500-hPa polar vortex minima are too deep by 50--100 m and too zonally symmetric. The Arctic sea level pressure maximum is displaced poleward, while the Icelandic region minimum is extended toward Europe, and the Aleutian region minimum is extended toward Asia. The Antarctic circumpolar trough of low sea level pressure is slightly north of the observed position and is 2--3 hPa too low. Antarctic katabatic winds are similar to observations in magnitude and regional variation. The Antarctic surface wind stress is estimated to be 30%--50% too strong in some regions. Polar tropospheric temperatures are 2&deg--4&degC colder than observations, mostly in the summer season. Low-level winter inversions over the Arctic Ocean are only 3&deg--4&degC, rather than the observed 10&degC. In the Antarctic midcontinent they are around 25&deg--30&degC (about 5&deg stronger than observed) and continue to be stronger than observed along the coast. Although water vapor column is uniformly low by 10%--20% compared to analyses in both polar regions, the regional patterns of minima over Greenland and the East Antarctic plateau are well represented. Annual 70&deg to pole CCM3 values are 5.8 kg m[sup-2] for the Arctic and 1.7 kg m[sup-2] for the Antarctic. The regional distribution of precipitation minus evaporation compares reasonably with analyses. (...). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present-day Arctic and Antarctic radiation budgets of the National Center for Atmospheric Research Community Climate Model version 3 (CCM3) are presented. The CCM3 simulation is from a prescribed and interannually varying sea surface temperature integration from January 1979 through August 1993. Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) data from 1985 through 1989 are used for validation of top-of-atmosphere (TOA) absorbed shortwave radiation (ASR) and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR). Summer ASR in both polar regions is less than the observations by about 20 W m[sup-2] . While the annual mean OLR in both polar regions is only 2--3 W m[sup-2] less than the ERBE data, the seasonal amplitude in OLR of 40 W m[sup-2] is smaller than the observed of 55--60 W m[sup-2] . The annual polar TOA radiation balance is smaller than observations by 5--10 W m[sup-2]. Compared to selected model and observational surface data, downward shortwave (SW) is too small by 50--70 W m[sup-2] and downward longwave (LW) too large by 10--30 W m[sup-2]. Surface downward LW in clear atmospheres is too small by 10--20 W m 22 . The absence of sea-ice melt ponds results in 10--20 W m[sup-2] too much SW absorption during early summer and from 20 to 40 W m[sup-2] too little during late summer. Summer cloud covers are reasonably well simulated, but winter low cloud cover is too high by 0.5--0.7 compared to surface cloud observations. Comparison with limited satellite and in situ observations indicates cloud water path (CWP) is too high by about a factor of 2. While cloud particle sizes are approximately in the range of observed values, regional variation between maritime and continental droplet sizes is too strong over coastlines. Despite several improvements in CCM3 radiation physics, the accuracy of polar TOA annual radiation balance is degraded against the ERBE data compared to CCM2. Improvement in CCM3 polar radiation budgets will require improved simulation of CWP, (...). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights the Antarctic Weather Forecasting Workshop (AWFW) held at Byrd Polar Research Center in Ohio State University in Ohio. Topics discussed in the workshop; State of operational weather forecasting in the Antarctic; Recommendations from the workshop.