Simulation Description
Two sets of models were run for the IPCC, consisting of very similar ocean circulations but different methodology for solving the equations of motion. The result is that the models have very different wind stresses over the Southern Ocean, with the CM2.0 exhibiting the common bias of winds that are shifted equatorward but the CM2.1 model being one of the few that have winds close to the correct latitude and magnitude in this region (Russell et al., 2006). Work by Reichler and Kim at the University of Utah suggests that this model series is one of the top models in a range of atmospheric characteristics. It also has one of the better simulations of El Nino among the IPCC models (van Oldenburgh et al., 2005; Wittenberg et al., 2006). However, as is the case with most AOGCMs run without flux adjustment, the models fail to capture the cold upwelling zones along the eastern boundaries of the Pacific and Atlantic, and tend to produce an overly dry Amazon basin.
Read more about this topic: GFDL CM2.X
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