Cloud for Climate

Infrastructure Gaps in Climate Research

Climate modeling stands as one of the most computationally intensive pursuits in scientific research. Today, the vast majority of comprehensive climate model simulations take place within government supercomputing facilities of the most economically advanced nations. This setup restricts capacity and accessibility for many researchers, particularly those in the Global South. Additionally, at present, the enormous datasets produced by these climate models and observational climate data demand robust computing systems and networks, thereby further restricting the geographical and institutional scope of climate research endeavors. These significant technological barriers impede progress in climate science on a global scale and hinder equitable engagement in research and climate-related decision-making processes for stakeholders in less resourced regions of the world.

Cloud for Climate

Cloud for Climate is a collaboration between SilverLining, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and the Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative aimed at accelerating climate research and promoting equity in climate science. In partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), we have established a cloud-based environment for the Community Earth System Model (CESM). In 2020 we conducted an advanced study of near-term and multi-decadal climate dynamics in this cloud-based environment, marking the first-ever full-scale production of climate model simulations in the cloud, AWS in this case. Led by scientists at the Climate and Global Dynamics (CGD) laboratory at NCAR, this study addresses crucial questions in near-term climate trends while pioneering a groundbreaking approach to accelerating climate science and broadening access to essential tools and information. Listen to this AWS podcast episode to learn more.
 

Podcast Overview
Video Overview

Transforming Research Capabilities In The Global South

Among the initial beneficiaries of cloud-based climate modeling capabilities and datasets are climate researchers from countries in the Global South. Models and datasets generated from model simulations are being made accessible in the cloud through the Amazon Sustainable Data Initiative, providing open access to researchers worldwide, facilitating a new level of transparency and more equitable opportunities to study near-term climate impacts and potential responses. The project team aims to significantly expand the availability of climate models and related datasets in user-friendly cloud-based services.

In October 2023, at the World Climate Research Program Open Science Conference in Kigali, Rwanda, SilverLining hosted a highly oversubscribed Cloud for Climate workshop. In collaboration with the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), scientists from NCAR, and AWS, this workshop offered attendees the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in running CESM on public cloud services. Given the high demand, NCAR volunteered to extend the program virtually, laying the groundwork for ongoing development and expansion.

Access the ARISE CESM Datasets

The Assessing Impacts and Responses of Climate Intervention on the Earth Systems (ARISE) Program is a collaboration among senior climate model developers and climate impacts researchers to define, develop, and deliver high-fidelity (representing, in detail, relevant systems and processes) simulations of scenarios for near-term climate change and SRM interventions. The effort began in 2020 with the first-ever high-fidelity climate model simulations of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) under median scenarios for climate change using two major climate models—the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s Community Earth System Model (CESM) and the UK MET Office UK Earth System Model (UKESM). These simulations produced an unprecedented and highly comprehensive dataset for studying the influence of SAI on climate and natural systems - now widely adopted by researchers. 

Access the open datasets for SRM research hosted on the AWS cloud from "Assessing Responses and Impacts of Solar Climate Intervention on the Earth System with Stratospheric Aerosol Injection" (ARISE-SAI). It comprises simulations conducted with CESM, with the goal of simulating a plausible deployment of SAI for climate intervention. These simulations enable the community to assess the Earth system responses. Read publications on research that use the ARISE dataset.

Media

  • ARISE Dataset Release Celebration at the 28th CESM Workshop

    Video [68 mins], June 2023

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  • The Transformational Possibility of Climate Models on the Cloud

    Video [69 mins], Nov. 2021

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  • AWS: Accelerating Climate Research

    Podcast [27 mins], Nov. 2021

    Click Here

  • Expanding Climate Science Research Capabilities in the Global South

    Video [20 mins], Nov. 2022

    Click Here

“Cloud access to climate models and datasets has huge potential to capacitate developing nation scientists to actually do good research, publish in good journals, and get into the academic playing field because we’re really not there yet compared to, say, the U.S. and European and Australian researchers.”

Chris Lennard, Research Scientist, Climate Systems Analysis Group (CSAG), University of Cape Town, Lighthouse Focal Point for Africa, World Climate Research Program; Lead Author, IPCC AR6 WG2 Africa chapter