About Climate Models:
The Global Climate Model Mapping Tools allow the user to evaluate climate models with observations and see the future projections of those models under two greenhouse gas emission scenarios. The seven climate models were selected by CARA researchers based on the availability of model output for the two scenarios of interest. The models differ in their output for a number of reasons, including spatial resolution in the atmosphere and ocean, treatments of land hydrology, and treatments of sea ice. Using this tool you can evaluate how well the models simulate the current climate and the way the climate has changed over the 20th century. You can then see the projections the models make over the 21st century.
Models also vary in the representation due to the size and location of the area covered. A single model will differ in its results when it is run over the entire CARA region or if it is run using data from a single climate station. For this reason we offer the results of the seven models for the entire CARA region, at a watershed or river basin scale, by state within the region and also for each of the Historical Climate Network (HCN) stations within the region.
It is best to begin with the Regional model tools. Using the maps in these tools you can compare the way that each represents the climate against past observations in a region to determine which model best represents a smaller area of interest.
Click here to look at regional climate models: Present Climate
| Climate Change
Once you have examined how these models represent your area of interest you can proceed to the smaller scales: Watershed, State, or Historical Climate Network station.