Project description
Measuring quantifiable impacts on climate science
The Southern Ocean is responsible for more than 60 % of the excess heat associated with anthropogenic climate change absorbed by the world’s oceans each year. By controlling heat and carbon exchanges between the atmosphere and the ocean, it regulates the global climate. However, little is known about the underlying processes. To contribute to reducing uncertainties in climate change predictions, the EU-funded SO-CHIC project will quantify variability of heat and carbon budgets in the Southern Ocean through an investigation of the key processes controlling exchanges between the atmosphere, ocean and sea ice using a combination of observational and modelling approaches. It will combine observation with existing decades-long time series and state-of-the-art modelling.
Objective
The Southern Ocean regulates the global climate by controlling heat and carbon exchanges between the atmosphere and the ocean. It is responsible for about 60-90% of the excess heat (i.e. associated with anthropogenic climate change) absorbed by the World Oceans each year, and is also recognised to largely control decadal scale variability of Earth carbon budget, with key implications for decision makers and regular global stocktake agreed as part of the Paris agreement. Despite such pivotal climate importance, its representation in global climate model represents one of the main weaknesses of climate simulation and projection because too little is known about the underlying processes. Limitations come both from the lack of observations in this extreme environment and its inherent sensitivity to intermittent small-scale processes that are not captured in current Earth system models. The overall objective of SO-CHIC is to understand and quantify variability of heat and carbon budgets in the Southern Ocean through an investigation of the key processes controlling exchanges between the atmosphere, ocean and sea ice using a combination of observational and modelling approaches. SO-CHIC considers the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean as a natural laboratory both because of its worldwide importance in water-mass formation and because of the strong European presence in this sector already established at national levels, which allow to best leverage existing expertise, infrastructure, and observation network, around one single coordinated overall objective. SO-CHIC also takes the opportunity of the recent re-appearance of the Atlantic Sector Weddell Polynya to unveil its dynamics and global impact on heat and carbon cycles. A combination of dedicated observation, existing decades-long time-series, and state-of-the-art modelling will be used to address specific objectives on key processes, as well as their impact and feedback on the large-scale atmosphere-ocean system.
Fields of science
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Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
75006 Paris
France
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Participants (16)
Legal entity other than a subcontractor which is affiliated or legally linked to a participant. The entity carries out work under the conditions laid down in the Grant Agreement, supplies goods or provides services for the action, but did not sign the Grant Agreement. A third party abides by the rules applicable to its related participant under the Grant Agreement with regard to eligibility of costs and control of expenditure.
75794 Paris
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SO17 1BJ Southampton
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RG6 6AH Reading
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SN2 1FL Swindon
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27570 Bremerhaven
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5838 Bergen
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8092 Zuerich
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405 30 Goeteborg
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OX1 2JD Oxford
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24148 Kiel
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16154 Genova
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2593 CE Den Haag
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0001 Pretoria
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H91 Galway
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75019 Paris
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The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.
SO14 3ZH Southampton
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