ESGF and ES-DOCDocumenting climate models and their simulations

• ES-DOC current and future plans• Working with ESGF

Eric Guilyardi, Balaji, Cecelia DeLuca, Sébastien Denvil, Mark Greenslade, Bryan Lawrence, Sylvia Murphy, Karl Taylor

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=ESGF & UV-CDAT meeting, Livermore - December 2013

Why ES-DOC

• Document underlying science in climate models and whys and hows of simulations (forcing, protocol, …)

• Understand differences and similarities in multi-model ensembles

• Use of climate model data expanding• Maturity and openness of model development• Essential building block of professional

documentation (with CF, DOI, …)• Legacy joint venture of METAFOR (EU) and CURATOR

(US) projectsGuilyardi et al. (BAMS 2013)

ES-DOC = creation, exploitation and dissemination of standards

• Climate modelling metadata conceptual model: the Common Information Model (CIM) -> ConCIM (UML)

• Real life application: CMIP5 -> AppCIM (XML)– Questionnaire, database, CIM tools (viewer, comparator)

• Definition of controlled vocabulary (CV)• Part of CMIP standards• Governance of standards

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Conceptual ModelClimate Modelling = an activity using a software to produce data on a grid to be archived in a repository.

UML

Application Model

Application Model

XSD

RDF

Instance @ PCMDI

XML

An essential aim is that the conceptual model is not changed by the manner in which it is used or applied.

Instance @ IPSL

Instance @ BADC

e.g. CIM

e.g. CMIP5

The CONCIM to APPCIM

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Novelty in community: Software CV

Gathering a way of describing (in a community consistent way) the scientific properties of model subcomponents

Controlled Vocabulary

570 controlled questions - hundred of choices !

Creating the CV mindmap

cf. Mark Greenslade presentation Thursday

ES-DOC and CMIP5 metadata status• What we have today:

– The CIM: strategic community effort effort here to stay, several projects already leveraging from it

– CMIP5 documentation: 42 models and 600 simulations described in CIM database – a unique ressource – contributes to AR5 (model table), articles…

– A set of controlled vocabulary– CIM tools: viewer and comparator (web service)– Governance: ES-DOC. EU-US close collaboration,

management and development process– Community « education » that such efforts contribute to

scientific process, credibility of projections and showcase of climate models

• CMIP5 database quality control– Role of model development groups vs. role of users (e.g. annotation) ?

• Governance of CIM and CV• Extension of scope (downscaling, …)• CIM tools ecosystem development• Prepare CMIP6:

– Core and tier 1 documentation ?– New generation of capture tool, better separation of concerns– Quality control, peer-review, DOIs

• Sustained funding on top of « ad-hoc » institutional funding and projects (IS-ENES2, PIMMS, ex-Arch,…)

Next steps and challenges

• Coherence of data/metadata structure and contents (e.g. 8 realms not useful for IPCC report) – via CMIP or new data panel ?

• ESGF/ES-DOC human and technical coordination – For development and operations– On web services, new ESGF deployments include metadata checks, etc…

• How do we organise coordination for CMIP6 ?• Similar governance and funding challenges

Working with ESGF

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The CONCIM

Software

Data

Activity

Grid

CIM versions available at: http://metaforclimate.eu/trac/browser/CIM

Climate Modelling = an activity using a software to produce data on a grid to be archived in a repository.