Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 1 January 1982:
Vol. 215. no. 4528, pp. 56 - 58
DOI: 10.1126/science.215.4528.56
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Articles

Transient Climate Response to Increasing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

K. BRYAN 1, F. G. KOMRO 1, S. MANABE 1, and M. J. SPELMAN 1

1 Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Princeton University, Post Office Box 308, Princeton, New Jersey 08540

The ocean's role in the delayed response of climate to increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide has been studied by means of a detailed three-dimensional climate model. A near-equilibrium state is perturbed by a fourfold, stepfunction increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide. The rise in the sea surface temperature was initially much more rapid in the tropics than at high latitudes. However, the fractional response, as normalized on the basis of the total difference between the high carbon dioxide and normal carbon dioxide climates, becomes almost uniform at all latitudes after 25 years. Because of the influence of a more rapid response over continents, the normalized response of the zonally averaged surface air temperature is faster and becomes nearly uniform with respect to latitude after only 10 years.

Submitted on August 31, 1981
Revised on September 25, 1981


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Detecting Climatic Change Signals: Are There Any "Fingerprints"?.
S. H. Schneider and S. H. Schneider (1994)
Science 263, 341-347
   Abstract »    PDF »
Global Sea Level Rise and the Greenhouse Effect: Might They Be Connected?.
W. R. Peltier, W. R. PELTIER, and A. M. TUSHINGHAM (1989)
Science 244, 806-810
   Abstract »    PDF »
The Greenhouse Effect: Science and Policy.
S. H. Schneider (1989)
Science 243, 771-781
   Abstract »    PDF »
Climate Response Times: Dependence on Climate Sensitivity and Ocean Mixing.
J. HANSEN, G. RUSSELL, A. LACIS, I. FUNG, D. RIND, and P. STONE (1985)
Science 229, 857-859
   Abstract »    PDF »
CO 2-sensitivity experiments using general circulation models.
W. Bach (1984)
Progress in Physical Geography 8, 583-609
   PDF »
Carbon Dioxide and Climate: The Importance of Realistic Geography in Estimating the Transient Temperature Response.
S. L. Thompson, S. L. THOMPSON, and S. H. SCHNEIDER (1982)
Science 217, 1031-1033
   Abstract »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)