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  4. TopoCLIM: rapid topography-based downscaling of regional climate model output in complex terrain v1.1
 
research article

TopoCLIM: rapid topography-based downscaling of regional climate model output in complex terrain v1.1

Fiddes, Joel
•
Aalstad, Kristoffer
•
Lehning, Michael  
March 2, 2022
Geoscientific Model Development

This study describes and evaluates a new downscaling scheme that specifically addresses the need for hillslope-scale atmospheric-forcing time series for modelling the local impact of regional climate change projections on the land surface in complex terrain. The method has a global scope in that it does not rely directly on surface observations and is able to generate the full suite of model forcing variables required for hydrological and land surface modelling in hourly time steps. It achieves this by utilizing the previously published TopoSCALE scheme to generate synthetic observations of the current climate at the hillslope scale while accounting for a broad range of surface–atmosphere interactions. These synthetic observations are then used to debias (downscale) CORDEX climate variables using the quantile mapping method. A further temporal disaggregation step produces sub-daily fields. This approach has the advantages of other empirical–statistical methods, including speed of use, while it avoids the need for ground data, which are often limited. It is therefore a suitable method for a wide range of remote regions where ground data is absent, incomplete, or not of sufficient length. The approach is evaluated using a network of high-elevation stations across the Swiss Alps, and a test application in which the impacts of climate change on Alpine snow cover are modelled.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.5194/gmd-15-1753-2022
Author(s)
Fiddes, Joel
Aalstad, Kristoffer
Lehning, Michael  
Date Issued

2022-03-02

Published in
Geoscientific Model Development
Volume

15

Issue

4

Start page

1753

End page

1768

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
CRYOS  
FunderGrant Number

FNS

200020_179130 / 1

Available on Infoscience
March 11, 2022
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/186225
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