10.07.2024

Kickoff meeting

With a welcome address from the project coordinator Prof. Mojib Latif, the PalMod working group leaders  - Prof. Gerrit Lohmann, Prof. Tatiana Ilyina, Prof. Kira Rehfeld as well as Dr. Swati Gehlot (DKRZ) and Dr. Jean-Philippe Baudouin - gave a status report for current and planned activities. Talk sessions on the topics “Comparing models & Model and Data”, “Thresholds / Tipping points of the coupled system” and “Future Climate and action” followed during the next two days. During the two poster sessions, individual project partners presented their work, results from the last project phase or future challenges, thus forming the basis for an informal exchange among each other.

Interview with Prof. Gerrit Lohmann on the occasion of the kickoff of PalMod Phase III (in German): https://www.fona.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2024/06/240611_Interview_GLohmann_PalMod_III.php

About the project PalMod

PalMod (PALeo MODeling: A national paleo climate modelling initiative) is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Science (BMBF) in three phases over a period of 10 years. The PalMod project aims for a better understanding of the climate variability and the relevant processes of the last 130,000 years. A dedicated group of paleo-modeling and proxy-data experts from all over Germany are working together under the umbrella of PalMod. Among the 10 partners being involved in the project are institutes from the Helmholtz Association, Max Planck Society, Leibniz Association, university institutes as well as the DKRZ.

Project goals

PalMod is envisioned to identify and constrain interactions between climate change, ice-sheet response (sea-level), and biogeochemical cycling, all of which ultimately determine the Earth system sensitivity on timescales up to multi-millennial. The past climate epochs show a great variety of fluctuations, sometimes with very rapid changes or reversals. PalMod assumes that coupled climate models that have been tested on the basis of these climate fluctuations will allow a more reliable estimate of the future climate. In the project phases PalMod I and II, climate models were developed with the focus to be capable to simulating phenomena as they could occur in response to abrupt climate events as a result of global warming. During PalMod phase I, comprehensive coupled climate - ice-sheet models were developed and optimized to study the deglaciation of the last glacial cycle. Subsequently, PalMod phase II addressed the Earth system behavior under different climatic boundary conditions during the last glacial cycle with focus on the glacial inception, Marine Isotope Stage 3, and deglaciation studies among others.

Phase III of PalMod is envisioned as an extensive production phase, in which coordinated transient experiments for the three key time intervals (last deglaciation and Holocene, Marine Isotope Stage 3, and last glacial inception) will be carried out. The analysis of model results will be guided by the implications for future climate changes. By integrating interactive ice sheets modules, dynamic permafrost with prognostic CO2, PalMod Phase III will be in a unique position to timely address critical knowledge gaps in paleo-climate science.

Core questions to be answered in PalMod Phase III
  • Will the future climate be more or less variable? 
  • Where are the critical thresholds beyond which rapid regime shifts will occur?
  • How sensitive are ocean currents in a warming world?
  • Could the polar ice sheets collapse catastrophically?
  • How fast can sea levels rise under current and future climate conditions?
  • What is the potential for a rapid release of carbon from thawing permafrost in a warming world?

Role of DKRZ in PalMod

DKRZ is a part of PalMod consortium since the project kickoff in August 2015.

During the first two phases, DKRZ was working on the optimization of the simulations running on its HPC system and was exploring new algorithms and other computer architectures.

Also as a part of cross cutting working group within phase II, the DKRZ handled the optimization of the ESMs towards a higher throughput of the fully coupled setup in order to enable the overarching goal of simulating a complete glacial cycle.

During PalMod phase II, DKRZ implemented for the first time a dedicated research data management (RDM) workflow for the PalMod project. A framework of communication between the various work packages via preparation and maintenance of a data management plan (DMP) was established. The PalMod RDM aspects also involved planning and implementation of data production standards (for coupled model data), data exchange, long-term archiving, and sharing among internal as well external project counterparts.

To support the extensive efforts of PalMod modelling community with a wide range of available coupled ESM experiments during phase II and phase III, DKRZ handles the RDM workflows for model data standardization (CF-CMOR standard), ESGF publication as well as long term data archiving via WDCC.

Attendees of the kickoff meeting for PalMod phase III at DKRZ in Hamburg.