The Need for Arctic Reanalyses: Opportunities with Federal Agencies

Abstract:

Improvements to Arctic reanalyses leave them poised to help a range of new users, especially at federal agencies. Concomitant opportunities exist to improve reanalyses themselves through collection of new data and observations for validation and model improvement. With growing Arctic mandates, federal agencies are required to both understand and forecast change. Challenging not just researchers, but also regulatory and operational agencies are the paucity of current and historic observations; the lack of knowledge of the physical processes driving change; and the poor understanding of the Arctic as a system within itself that also has global connections. Recognizing that advances in reanalyses may assist federal agencies, the Office of Science and Technology Policy recently established an interagency collaboration team called Systematic Improvements to Reanalyses of The Arctic (SIRTA) under the aegis of the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee. SIRTA’s terms of reference are to 1) Evaluate the state, utilization, limitations and potential utility of the current Arctic reanalyses; 2) Inventory and assess the currently planned operational and experimental observations of the Arctic system to improve reanalyses; and 3) Examine reanalyses products and forecast models for potential improvement. This talk will cover SIRTA’s terms of reference, the emerging uses of reanalyses, and the mechanisms to improve them. Challenges to be discussed are characterizing the high priority physical processes, ensuring all available data streams are included in the reanalyses, discussing mechanisms to obtain validation data, and delivering reanalyses outputs in formats appropriate to users.