Comparison of seasonal and intraseasonal variation of tropical climate in NCAR CCM2 GCM with two different cumulus schemes

Abstract

The seasonal and intraseasonal variation of tropical climate in National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Community Climate Model Version 2 (CCM2) General Circulation Model (GCM) has been examined using two different cumulus parameterization schemes, the moist convective adjustment scheme of Manabe et al. (1965) and the mass-flux scheme of Hack (1994). Ten-year simulations have been undertaken with each of these schemes with SST prescribed according to the monthly mean climatology. The seasonal mean rainfall in the tropics simulated by the moist convective adjustment scheme (MCA) scheme was found to be more realistic than the mass-flux (Hack) scheme. The more realistic simulation by the MCA scheme was found to be on account of the fact that the mean moist static energy of the lower troposphere in the MCA scheme was closer to the observations than in the Hack scheme. In both the schemes, the precipitation in the tropics increases montonically with precipitable water vapour when the precipitable water vapour is above 40 mm. This is consistent with relationship between precipitation and precipitable water in the observations. The Hack scheme tends to simulate lower precipitation (for a given amount of precipitable water) when compared to observations. The MCA scheme simulates the eastward migration of convective systems along the equator quite well, although the speed of propagation is somewhat low. The poleward migration of convective systems in the Indian region is more realistically simulated by the MCA scheme than the Hack scheme. This is because the latitudinal gradient of the mean moist static energy in the MCA scheme is more realistic than in the Hack scheme. Over most of the tropics, simulation by the MCA scheme is more realistic on both seasonal and intraseasonal timescales.