Effects of Desalination Processes on the Water Circulation and Earth System

Desalination is emerging as a promising alternative among various technologies to resolve water shortage. However, desalination requires a sufficient energy and cooling device and therefore poses limitations for its installation and application. In particular, many countries suffering water deficits are economically underdeveloped and cannot afford the technology. As this technology, which changes seawater into freshwater, has little environmental impact, developed countries will need to assist less developed countries to introduce this technology as a humanitarian effort. This will help reduce the number of countries that have experienced difficulty with development.

Coupling of the Calculated Freezing and Thawing Front Parameterization in the Earth System Model CAS-ESM

The soil freezing and thawing process affects soil physical properties,such as heat conductivity,heat capacity,and hydraulic conductivity in frozen ground regions,and further affects the processes of soil energy,hydrology,and carbon and nitrogen cycles.In this study,the calculation of freezing and thawing front parameterization was implemented into the earth system model of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS-ESM)and its land component,the Common Land Model(CoLM),to investigate the dynamic change of freezing and thawing fronts and their effects.Our results showed that the developed models could reproduce the soil freezing and thawing process and the dynamic change of freezing and thawing fronts.The regionally averaged value of active layer thickness in the permafrost regions was 1.92 m,and the regionally averaged trend value was 0.35 cm yr–1.The regionally averaged value of maximum freezing depth in the seasonally frozen ground regions was 2.15 m,and the regionally averaged trend value was–0.48 cm yr–1.The active layer thickness increased while the maximum freezing depth decreased year by year.These results contribute to a better understanding of the freezing and thawing cycle process.

Spatial Inhomogeneity of Atmospheric CO_(2) Concentration and Its Uncertainty in CMIP6 Earth System Models

This paper provides a systematic evaluation of the ability of 12 Earth System Models(ESMs)participating in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6(CMIP6)to simulate the spatial inhomogeneity of the atmospheric carbon dioxide(CO_(2))concentration.The multi-model ensemble mean(MME)can reasonably simulate the increasing trend of CO_(2) concentration from 1850 to 2014,compared with the observation data from the Scripps CO_(2) Program and CMIP6 prescribed data,and improves upon the CMIP5 MME CO_(2) concentration(which is overestimated after 1950).The growth rate of CO_(2) concentration in the northern hemisphere(NH)is higher than that in the southern hemisphere(SH),with the highest growth rate in the mid-latitudes of the NH.The MME can also reasonably simulate the seasonal amplitude of CO_(2) concentration,which is larger in the NH than in the SH and grows in amplitude after the 1950s(especially in the NH).Although the results of the MME are reasonable,there is a large spread among ESMs,and the difference between the ESMs increases with time.The MME results show that regions with relatively large CO_(2) concentrations(such as northern Russia,eastern China,Southeast Asia,the eastern United States,northern South America,and southern Africa)have greater seasonal variability and also exhibit a larger inter-model spread.Compared with CMIP5,the CMIP6 MME simulates an average spatial distribution of CO_(2) concentration that is much closer to the site observations,but the CMIP6-inter-model spread is larger.The inter-model differences of the annual means and seasonal cycles of atmospheric CO_(2) concentration are both attributed to the differences in natural sources and sinks of CO_(2) between the simulations.

Investigating the effect of the Tibetan Plateau on the ITCZ using a coupled Earth system model

本文利用耦合地球气候系统模式研究了青藏高原对热带辐合带(ITCZ)的影响.我们研究发现热带大西洋ITCZ的位置对青藏高原存在与否有明显的敏感性.与目前真实情况相比,移除青藏高原会导致北半球海面降温,南半球海面升温.这种海面温度变化在大西洋表现得尤为明显,导致热带大西洋最大海温中心向南移动,从而迫使大气对流中心向南移动,即表现为ITCZ的南移.相应地,夏季热带大气Hadley环流的上升支也发生明显南移.北(南)半球海洋变冷(变暖)这种态势要求增强跨赤道向北的大气经向热量输送,从而维持各个半球的能量平衡,而这需要ITCZ位置的南移才能实现.本文研究表明,青藏高原的存在在现今ITCZ气候态的形成中可能扮演了重要角色.

Major Modes of Short-Term Climate Variability in the Newly Developed NUIST Earth System Model(NESM)

A coupled earth system model（ESM） has been developed at the Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology（NUIST） by using version 5.3 of the European Centre Hamburg Model（ECHAM）, version 3.4 of the Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean（NEMO）, and version 4.1 of the Los Alamos sea ice model（CICE）. The model is referred to as NUIST ESM1（NESM1）. Comprehensive and quantitative metrics are used to assess the model＇s major modes of climate variability most relevant to subseasonal-to-interannual climate prediction. The model＇s assessment is placed in a multi-model framework. The model yields a realistic annual mean and annual cycle of equatorial SST, and a reasonably realistic precipitation climatology, but has difficulty in capturing the spring–fall asymmetry and monsoon precipitation domains. The ENSO mode is reproduced well with respect to its spatial structure, power spectrum, phase locking to the annual cycle, and spatial structures of the central Pacific（CP）-ENSO and eastern Pacific（EP）-ENSO; however, the equatorial SST variability,biennial component of ENSO, and the amplitude of CP-ENSO are overestimated. The model captures realistic intraseasonal variability patterns, the vertical-zonal structures of the first two leading predictable modes of Madden–Julian Oscillation（MJO）, and its eastward propagation; but the simulated MJO speed is significantly slower than observed. Compared with the T42 version, the high resolution version（T159） demonstrates improved simulation with respect to the climatology, interannual variance, monsoon–ENSO lead–lag correlation, spatial structures of the leading mode of the Asian–Australian monsoon rainfall variability, and the eastward propagation of the MJO.

Earth System Model FGOALS-s2: Coupling a Dynamic Global Vegetation and Terrestrial Carbon Model with the Physical Climate System Model

Earth System Models （ESMs） are fundamental tools for understanding climate-carbon feedback. An ESM version of the Flexible Global Ocean-Atmosphere-Land System model （FGOALS） was recently developed within the IPCC AR5 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 （CMIP5） modeling framework, and we describe the development of this model through the coupling of a dynamic global vegetation and terrestrial carbon model with FGOALS-s2. The performance of the coupled model is evaluated as follows. The simulated global total terrestrial gross primary production （GPP） is 124.4 PgC yr-I and net pri- mary production （NPP） is 50.9 PgC yr-1. The entire terrestrial carbon pools contain about 2009.9 PgC, comprising 628.2 PgC and 1381.6 PgC in vegetation and soil pools, respectively. Spatially, in the tropics, the seasonal cycle of NPP and net ecosystem production （NEP） exhibits a dipole mode across the equator due to migration of the monsoon rainbelt, while the seasonal cycle is not so significant in Leaf Area Index （LAI）. In the subtropics, especially in the East Asian monsoon region, the seasonal cycle is obvious due to changes in temperature and precipitation from boreal winter to summer. Vegetation productivity in the northern mid-high latitudes is too low, possibly due to low soil moisture there. On the interannual timescale, the terrestrial ecosystem shows a strong response to ENSO. The model- simulated Nifio3.4 index and total terrestrial NEP are both characterized by a broad spectral peak in the range of 2-7 years. Further analysis indicates their correlation coefficient reaches -0.7 when NEP lags the Nifio3.4 index for about 1-2 months.

Multisphere Tectonics of the Earth System

The fundamental theoretical framework of the Multisphere Tectonics of the Earth System is as follows:(1)It intends to extend the geotectonic studies from the crustal and lithospheric tectonics to the multisphere tectonics of the Ear th system as a whole.(2)The global dynamics driven by both the Earth system and the cosmic celestial system:solar energy,multispheric interactions of the Earth system and the combined effects of the motions of celestial bodies in the cosmos syste m are the driving forces of various geological processes.(3)The Continent-Ocean transformation theory:the continent and ocean are two opposite yet unified geological units,which can be transformed into each other;neither continent nor ocean wi ll survive forever;there is no one-way development of continental accretion or ocean extinction;the simple theory of one-way continental accretion is regarded as invalid.(4)The continental crust and mantle are characterized by multiple layers,with different layers liable to slide along the interfaces between them,but corroboration is needed that continents move as a who le or even drift freely.(5)The cyclic evolution theory:the development of Earth’s tectonics is not a uniform change,but a spiral forward evolution,characterized by a combination of non-uniform,non-linear,gradual and catastrophic changes;different evolutionary stages(tectonic cycles)of Earth have distinctive global tectonic patterns and characteristics,one tectonic mo del should not be applied to different tectonic cycles or evolutionary stages.(6)The structure and evolution of Earth are asymmetric and heterogeneous,thus one tectonic model cannot be applied to different areas of the world.(7)The polycyclic evolution of the continental crust:the continental crust is formed by polycyclic tectonics and magmatism,rather than simply lateral or vertical accretion.(8)The role of deep faults:the deep fault zones cutting through different layers of the crus t a nd mantle usually play important roles in tectonic evolution.For example,the present-day mid-ocean ridge fault zones,transform fault zones and Benioff zones outline the global tectonic framework.Different tectonic cycles and stages of Earth’s evolutio n must have their own distinctive deep fault systems which control the global tectonic framework and evolutionary processes during different tectonic cycles and stages.Starting from the two mantle superplumes Jason(Pacific)and Tuzo(Africa),the study of the evolutionary process of the composition and structure of the crust and mantle during the great transformation an d reorganization of the Meso-Cenozoic tectonic framework in China and the other regions of Asia is a good demonstration of theory of Multisphere Tectonics of the Earth System.

Global air-sea CO_(2) exchange fl ux since 1980s: results from CMIP6 Earth System Models

The ocean could profoundly modulate the ever-increasing atmospheric CO_(2) by air-sea CO_(2) exchange process,which is also able to cause signifi cant changes of physical and biogeochemical properties in return.In this study,we assessed the long-term average and spatial-temporal variability of global air-sea CO_(2) exchange fl ux(F CO_(2))since 1980s basing on the results of 18 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6(CMIP6)Earth System Models(ESMs).Our fi ndings indicate that the CMIP6 ESMs simulated global CO_(2) sink in recent three decades ranges from 1.80 to 2.24 Pg C/a,which is coincidence with the results of cotemporaneous observations.What’s more,the CMIP6 ESMs consistently show that the global oceanic CO_(2) sink has gradually intensifi ed since 1980s as well as the observations.This study confi rms the simulated F CO_(2) could reach agreements with the observations in the aspect of primary climatological characteristics,however,the simulation skills of CIMP6 ESMs in diverse open-sea biomes are unevenness.None of the 18 CMIP6 ESMs could reproduce the observed F CO_(2) increasement in the central-eastern tropical Pacifi c and the midlatitude Southern Ocean.Defi ciencies of some CMIP6 ESMs in reproducing the atmospheric pressure systems of the Southern Hemisphere and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation(ENSO)mode of the tropical Pacifi c are probably the major causes.

Simulations of dissolved oxygen concentration in CMIP5 Earth system models

The climatologies of dissolved oxygen concentration in the ocean simulated by nine Earth system models(ESMs) from the historical emission driven experiment of CMIP5(Phase 5 of the Climate Model Intercomparison Project) are quantitatively evaluated by comparing the simulated oxygen to the WOA09 observation based on common statistical metrics. At the sea surface, distribution of dissolved oxygen is well simulated by all nine ESMs due to well-simulated sea surface temperature(SST), with both globally-averaged error and root mean square error(RMSE) close to zero, and both correlation coefficients and normalized standard deviation close to 1. However, the model performance differs from each other at the intermediate depth and deep ocean where important water masses exist. At the depth of 500 to 1 000 m where the oxygen minimum zones(OMZs) exist, all ESMs show a maximum of globally-averaged error and RMSE, and a minimum of the spatial correlation coefficient. In the ocean interior, the reason for model biases is complicated, and both the meridional overturning circulation(MOC) and the particulate organic carbon flux contribute to the biases of dissolved oxygen distribution. Analysis results show the physical bias contributes more. Simulation bias of important water masses such as North Atlantic Deep Water(NADW), Antarctic Bottom Water(AABW) and North Pacific Intermediate Water(NPIW) indicated by distributions of MOCs greatly affects the distributions of oxygen in north Atlantic, Southern Ocean and north Pacific, respectively.Although the model simulations of oxygen differ greatly from each other in the ocean interior, the multi-model mean shows a better agreement with the observation.

China’s EarthLab-Forefront of Earth System Simulation Research

This article introduces“EarthLab”,a major new Earth system numerical simulation facility developed in China.EarthLab is a numerical simulation system for a physical climate system,an environmental system,an ecological system,a solid earth system,and a space weather system as a whole with a high-performance scientific computing platform.EarthLab consists of five key elements-namely:a global earth numerical simulation system,a regional high-precision simulation system,a supercomputing support and management system,a database,data assimilation and visualization system,and a high-performance computing system for earth sciences.EarthLab helps to study the atmosphere,hydrosphere,cryosphere,lithosphere,and biosphere,as well as their interactions,to improve the accuracy of predictions by integrating simulations and observations,and to provide a scientific foundation for major issues such as national disaster prevention and mitigation.The construction and operation of EarthLab will involve close cooperation with joint contributions and shared benefits.

Key problems of the four-dimensional Earth system

Compelling evidence indicates that the solid Earth consists of two physicochemically distinct zones separated radially in the middle of the lower mantle at∼1800 km depth.The inner zone is governed by pressure-induced physics and chemistry dramatically different from the conventional behavior in the outer zone.These differences generate large physical and chemical potentials between the two zones that provide fundamental driving forces for triggering major events in Earth’s history.One of the main chemical carriers between the two zones isH_(2)Oin hydrous minerals that subducts into the inner zone,releases hydrogen,and leaves oxygen to create superoxides and form oxygen-rich piles at the core–mantle boundary,resulting in localized net oxygen gain in the inner zone.Accumulation of oxygen-rich piles at the base of the mantle could eventually reach a supercritical level that triggers eruptions,injecting materials that cause chemical mantle convection,superplumes,large igneous provinces,extreme climate changes,atmospheric oxygen fluctuations,and mass extinctions.Interdisciplinary research will be the key for advancing a unified theory of the four-dimensional Earth system.

Global Climate Internal Variability in a 2000-year Control Simulation with Community Earth System Model(CESM)

Using the low-resolution(T31, equivalent to 3.75°× 3.75°) version of the Community Earth System Model(CESM) from the National Center for Atmospheric Research(NCAR), a global climate simulation was carried out with fixed external forcing factors(1850 Common Era.(C.E.) conditions) for the past 2000 years. Based on the simulated results, spatio-temporal structures of surface air temperature, precipitation and internal variability, such as the El Nio-Southern Oscillation(ENSO), the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation(AMO), the Pacific Decadal Oscillation(PDO), and the North Atlantic Oscillation(NAO), were compared with reanalysis datasets to evaluate the model performance. The results are as follows: 1) CESM showed a good performance in the long-term simulation and no significant climate drift over the past 2000 years; 2) climatological patterns of global and regional climate changes simulated by the CESM were reasonable compared with the reanalysis datasets; and 3) the CESM simulated internal natural variability of the climate system performs very well. The model not only reproduced the periodicity of ENSO, AMO and PDO events but also the 3–8 years variability of the ENSO. The spatial distribution of the CESM-simulated NAO was also similar to the observed. However, because of weaker total irradiation and greenhouse gas concentration forcing in the simulation than the present, the model performances had some differences from the observations. Generally, the CESM showed a good performance in simulating the global climate and internal natural variability of the climate system. This paves the way for other forced climate simulations for the past 2000 years by using the CESM.

Understanding the Interactions between Climate Change,Landscape Evolution,Surface Processes and Tectonics in the Earth System:What Can the Studies of Chinese Deserts Contribute?

Due to large deserts on Earth surface a thorough understanding of climate change, landscape evolution and geomorphological processes having occurred in deserts is crucial for Earth System Science. The landscapes in deserts are, however, diverse and different over the globe with regard to their geomorphological nature, human activities and geological histories. In the last decades a great number of efforts have been put to the investigation of the initial timing of the occurrence of arid climate, e. g. in northwestern China. Silty sediments in the downwind directions have been used to deduce the histories of deserts. In general, there is a lack of knowledge about processes and landscapes in Chinese drylands between the initial Miocene silt sedimentation at desert margins and the late Quaternary multiple occurrences of wetter climate with assumed large lakes in many of the deserts in northern China. The geomorphological concept of three primary triggering factors, i.e., the sediment supply, sediment availability and transport capacity of wind, and additionally the underground geology need to be fully considered for a better understanding of the environmental histories of sand seas which should not be viewed as equivalent for deserts because sand seas cover between 〈 1% and ca. 45% of the desert areas in various continents dependent on a complex interaction between various processes of both exogenous and endogenous origins.

Sedimentological/Palaeogeographic Data as Fundamental Building Blocks of the DDE Project:Critical Underpinning of Reconstructing Deep-time Earth Systems

1 Introduction Sedimentary rocks archive important information for understanding how the earth system operates and how life and environments have evolved through earth history.Properly identifying characteristics of sedimentary rocks,along with the subsequent interpretation of depositional processes and sedimentary environments in a basin or locality.

Regional earth system modeling：review and future directions

耦合区域地球系统模式(RESM)现在仍处于早期的发展阶段,在本文中,我们对其近期相关进展进行了回顾。到目前为止,已经开发出了耦合的区域大气–海洋–海冰、大气–气溶胶和大气–生物圈模式,但总体它们仅在有限的区域得到应用,需要更多的工作来评估其在更多区域的可移植性。我们认为RESM发展中的未来挑战,是在大气、海洋、冰冻圈、生物圈、化学圈以外,同时将人类及其活动成分以完全相互作用的方式引入进来。

Major biological events and fossil energy formation: On the development of energy science under the earth system framework

In geological history, one major life explosion and five mass extinction events occurred. These major biological and environmental events affected the evolution of the Earth ecosystem and controlled the formation of organic-rich strata. The life explosion occurred in Cambrian and the five mass extinction events happened at the end of Ordovician, Late Devonian, end of Permian, end of Triassic, and end of Cretaceous, respectively. They are corresponded to the formation of multiple suites of organic-rich strata globally, which are crucial to the formation, evolution and distribution of the fossil energy on Earth. China’s energy is characterized by "unlimited new energy, rich in coal but insufficient in oil and gas ", and it is determined to rely on new energy sources to achieve " energy independence " and carbon neutrality. From the perspective of the Earth system evolution, we investigate the multiple relationships between energy and Earth, energy and environment, as well as energy and human beings, and carry out comprehensive research on energy. Energy science refers to the science of studying the various energy sources formation and distribution, evaluation and selection, production and utilization, orderly replacement, development prospects, etc. in temporal and spatial scales based on the evolution of the Earth system. The connotation of energy science includes three core contents:(1) The relationship between the Earth and energy, including the formation of energy in the Earth system and the feedback of energy consumption to the Earth’s climate and environment;(2) The relationship between the Earth environment and the human beings, including the Earth environment breeding human beings and human activities transforming the earth environment;(3) The relationship between the energy and the human beings, including the development of energy technology by human beings and the progress of human society driven by energy utilization. The energy science focuses on the formation and development of fossil energy, development and orderly replacement of new energy, exploration and utilization of energy in deep earth and deep space, and energy development strategy and planning. The proposal of energy science is of great significance for improving the discipline system, promoting energy development, clarifying the development direction of energy transition, driving the carbon neutral geology research and constructing a habitable Earth.

Study of“Digital Earth”and“Earth System Science”

"Digital Earth"is a leap in the process of mankind learning about the Earth after the great geographical discovery of Copernicus,Galileoi’s heliocentric theory.Currently a series of problems like nature resources,environment,zoology and disaster have threatened the survival and development of mankind. In recent years,long term and solid

Deep Volatiles as the Key for Energy and Environments of the Four-Dimensional Earth System

Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, and their compounds are volatile components that dominate the thin and fragile atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere on Earth’s habitable surface. However, the vast majority of these volatiles are hidden in the deep interior, where the high pressure–temperature conditions drastically and categorically alter the physics and chemistry of the volatiles. Like the bloodstream of an organism, the circulations and interactions of volatiles in the deep Earth modulate climate, resources, energy, natural hazards, and other factors that define the Earth as a unique living and changing planet.

A Data Analysis Framework for Earth System Simulation within an <i>In-Situ</i>Infrastructure

This paper presents a generic procedure to implement a scalable and high performance data analysis framework for large-scale scientific simulation within an in-situ infrastructure. It demonstrates a unique capability for global Earth system simulations using advanced computing technologies (i.e., automated code analysis and instrumentation), in-situ infrastructure (i.e., ADIOS) and big data analysis engines (i.e., SciKit-learn). This paper also includes a useful case that analyzes a globe Earth System simulations with the integration of scalable in-situ infrastructure and advanced data processing package. The in-situ data analysis framework can provides new insights on scientific discoveries in multiscale modeling paradigms.