Changes in regional climate extremes as a function of global mean temperature: an interactive plotting framework
Richard Wartenburger1,Martin Hirschi1,Markus G. Donat2,3,Peter Greve4,Andy J. Pitman2,3,and Sonia I. Seneviratne1Richard Wartenburger et al. Richard Wartenburger1,Martin Hirschi1,Markus G. Donat2,3,Peter Greve4,Andy J. Pitman2,3,and Sonia I. Seneviratne1
1Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
2ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
3Climate Change Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
4International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Laxenburg, Austria
1Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
2ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
3Climate Change Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
4International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Laxenburg, Austria
Correspondence: Richard Wartenburger (richard.wartenburger@env.ethz.ch) and Sonia I. Seneviratne (sonia.seneviratne@ethz.ch)
Received: 06 Feb 2017 – Discussion started: 21 Feb 2017 – Revised: 27 Jun 2017 – Accepted: 19 Aug 2017 – Published: 29 Sep 2017
Abstract. This article extends a previous study Seneviratne et al. (2016) to provide regional analyses of changes in climate extremes as a function of projected changes in global mean temperature. We introduce the DROUGHT-HEAT Regional Climate Atlas, an interactive tool to analyse and display a range of well-established climate extremes and water-cycle indices and their changes as a function of global warming. These projections are based on simulations from the fifth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5). A selection of example results are presented here, but users can visualize specific indices of interest using the online tool. This implementation enables a direct assessment of regional climate changes associated with global mean temperature targets, such as the 2 and 1.5° limits agreed within the 2015 Paris Agreement.
This article analyses regional changes in climate extremes as a function of projected changes in global mean temperature. We introduce the DROUGHT-HEAT Regional Climate Atlas, an interactive tool to analyse and display a range of well-established climate extremes and water-cycle indices and their changes as a function of global warming. Readers are encouraged to use the online tool for visualization of specific indices of interest, e.g. to assess their response to 1.5 or 2 °C global warming.
This article analyses regional changes in climate extremes as a function of projected changes in...
