Developments within GCOS Agenda item #24 Jean-Louis FELLOUS GCOS - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Presentation to the 26th CEOS Plenary at Bengaluru, India 24-27 October, 2012

Developments within GCOS

Agenda item #24

Jean-Louis FELLOUS GCOS Space Rapporteur

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Scope of GCOS

GCOS encompasses the climate components of:

• the WMO observing systems (WIGOS: GOS, GAW, WHYCOS, ...)
• the IOC-led co-sponsored Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS)
• the FAO-led co-sponsored Global Terrestrial Observing System (GTOS)
• observational elements of research programmes (WCRP, IGBP, ...)
• other systems contributing climate observations, data management or products

which together form our overall global observing system for climate, and the climate-observing component of the GEO System of Systems

The GCOS program:

• assesses and communicates overall requirements
• advises on implementation and reporting
• reviews and promotes progress

covering the observations, transmission and management of data, establishment of fundamental climate data records and the formation of products from them

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Concept of GCOS

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

GCOS Operation

GCOS functions through contributions from:

• NMHSs, other national institutions and regional agencies
• to the observing systems, including to baseline and reference atmospheric networks

(GSN, GUAN, GRUAN, ...), following GCOS principles and guidelines

• operating monitoring centres, an analysis/archive centre, lead centres, …
• supporting the GCOS Cooperation Mechanism and regional activities
• coordinating their specific national GCOS activities
• Secretariats of contributing observing systems, related Technical Commissions,

space-agency coordinating bodies, expert groups, …

• GCOS bodies:
• the Programme Director and staff at WMO
• the Steering Committee
• co-sponsored Panels for Atmosphere, Ocean and Land, and their working groups
• Also working through representation on the WCRP Data Advisory Panel

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Panels and Observing System Status

Atmosphere (AOPC) and Land (TOPC) Panels have met this past year Change in GOOS governance delayed Ocean (OOPC) Panel meeting Panels keep observing-system performance under review

• still many positives, despite funding pressures
• concerns include:
• some in situ network deterioration, real or threatened, including reductions in

atmospheric composition measurements and maintenance of moored buoys

• real or potential gaps or delay in provision of several types of satellite data,

including altimetry, limb sounding, reference measurement and basic meteorological measurement from polar orbit

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

GCOS Continuous Improvement and Assessment Cycle

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

The GCOS Assessment Cycle

Adequacy assessment

• Second report on adequacy of global observing system published in 2003

Implementation Plan

• primarily in support of UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
• detailed statement of actions that need to be undertaken by identified “agents of

implementation” to address inadequacies

• first published in 2004, with Satellite Supplement in 2006

Progress assessment

• report on progress against 2004 Plan published in 2009
• led to revision of Implementation Plan in 2010, and Satellite Supplement in 2011

Process

• prepared by editors and SC/Panel chairs based on input from workshops
• drafts are subject to open review
• presented to UNFCCC for consensus response of parties to the convention

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Essential Climate Variables (ECVs)

ECVs are physical variables, or groups of related variables, for which provision

• f sustained observations and/or derived datasets is feasible, and that are

important for meeting UNFCCC and other climate requirements

Atmospheric

Surface: Air temperature, wind speed and direction, water vapour, pressure, precipitation, surface radiation budget Upper-air: Temperature, wind speed and direction, water vapour, cloud properties, earth radiation budget (including solar irradiance) Composition: Carbon dioxide, methane, and other long-lived greenhouse gases,

• zone and aerosol, supported by their precursors

Oceanic

Surface: Sea-surface temperature, sea-surface salinity, sea level, sea state, sea ice, surface current, ocean colour, carbon dioxide partial pressure, ocean acidity, phytoplankton Sub-surface: Temperature, salinity, current, nutrients, carbon dioxide partial pressure, ocean acidity, oxygen, tracers

Terrestrial

River discharge, water use, groundwater, lakes, snow cover, glaciers and ice caps, ice sheets, permafrost, albedo, land cover (including vegetation type), fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FAPAR), leaf area index (LAI), above- ground biomass, soil carbon, fire disturbance, soil moisture

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

ECVs

An ECV is not a dataset or product. A dataset, climate data record or product that relates to an ECV may be called an ECV dataset, an ECV data record or an ECV product ECVs were first identified as such in the 2nd Adequacy Report, stemming from the original GCOS concept of “Principal Observations”. Subsequent GCOS-IP and Satellite Supplements were structures around requirements for observing and deriving data products for the ECVs ECVs were recognized by UNFCCC CoP in responding to the Adequacy Report and IP. CoP requested Parties to report on their programs for contributing observations of the ECVs to the international community ECVs have been increasingly recognized since then, e.g. in the ESA Climate Change Initiative (CCI) and the European FP7 Calls & Projects 2010-IP revised the list of ECVs (unlikely to change until next IP revision) Concept is spreading: Essential (Ocean, Biodiversity) Variables

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Partnerships

GCOS is involved in a number of partnerships and collaborations

• GCOS maintains close connection with CEOS and its Working Group on Climate
• GCOS is invited by CGMS to report regularly to its Plenary
• GCOS is participating in the Climate Monitoring Architecture activity
• GCOS acts, together with EUMETSAT and ESA, in favor of establishing an ECV data

inventory

• GCOS and WCRP are eager to possibly hold a second workshop on the ECV data

inventory, following the first GCOS-WCRP-ESA workshop on this topic, held in 2010 in Frascati

GCOS celebrated its 20th anniversary at WMO on 29 June 2012, in the presence of a large number of representatives of its sponsors and partners, including official space agency representation (ESA, EUMETSAT), and many of its visionary initiators

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

GCOS Future Plans

Satellite Supplement to 2010 Implementation Plan published Dec 2011

• placing emphasis on requirements for products

GCOS highly values CEOS coordinating space-agency response just sent to UNFCCC GCOS contributed to plan for Observation & Monitoring component of GFCS GCOS mapped out a proposal for next assessment cycle

• liaising with UNFCCC
• reviewing data needs for adaptation and service provision (2012-2013), linking

with GFCS, UNEP and other initiatives

• assessing general progress and adequacy (2013-2015), taking account of

uncertainties identified by the IPCC 5th Assessment process

• formulating new Implementation Plan (2015-2016)

Future activities will be subject to the outcome of a Sponsors’ review of the programme to be held over coming 12 months

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Timetable for delivering the adequacy/progress report and new IP

• Q1

Q1

• Q2

Q2

• Q3

Q3

• Q4

Q4

UNFCCC GFCS IPCC

SBSTA36

• bservation

vations & research dialogu

• gue

AR5 WG I approval

• val of

Report

2012 2012 2013 2013 2014 2014 2015 2015 GCOS

SC SC-20 20

SBSTA37/COP1 P18 Observation vations & research (CEOS S response) WMO Cg-ext (GFCS) SBSTA38 research dialogu

• gue

SBSTA40 research SBSTA42 SBSTA39/COP1 P19

• bservation

vations SBSTA41/COP2 P20

Durban ban Platform form SC SC-21 21 SC SC-22 22 SC SC-23 23

Workshops

• ps

GCOS/IPCC IPCC WG I and II Report to SBSTA on work plan up to 2016

WMO Cg-XVII II

Adequac acy/Pr Progr

• gress

draft t availab ilable le Final al IP Plan in 2016 to SBSTA45/COP2 P22 AR5 Synthes esis is Report Delive vere red d to COP20 AR5 WG II and WG III approva roval l of Report GFCS implement. . activ ivit ities ies Fast Track Proje jects ts

Congre ress ss Review w

Workshops

• ps on

Observation vation & Adapt ptat ation ion Draft GCOS Impl. plan Draft GCOS Impl. Plan Adequac acy/Pr Progr

• gress

Final l Report

• Q1

Q1

• Q2

Q2

• Q3

Q3

• Q4

Q4

• Q1

Q1

• Q2

Q2

• Q3

Q3

• Q4

Q4

• Q1

Q1

• Q2

Q2

• Q3

Q3

• Q4

Q4

GEOSS

SBSTA43/COP2 P21 Plenary ary 9 Plenary ary 10 Plenary ary 11 Plenary ary 12 Monitor torin ing g and Evalu aluation ation SBA Climate te

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The 26th CEOS Plenary – Bengaluru, India - 24-27 October, 2012

Thank you!