LOVECLIM, a three-dimensional model of the Earth system for investigating long-term climate changes

A three-dimensional global model of the Earth system suitable for studying the long-term evolution of climate (LOVECLIM) has been recently developed. This model is made up of a coarse-resolution three-dimensional atmosphere-sea-ice-ocean model (ECBILT-CLIO), a dynamical model of the continental biosphere (VECODE), a comprehensive model of the oceanic carbon cycle (LOCH), and a high-resolution thermomechanical model of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets (AGISM). The atmospheric component has the big advantage that it has been simplified to a level that makes runs on a multi-century time-scale computationaly feasible, while still being capable of producing results that, on the whole, are comparable to those of atmospheric general circulation models. The performance of the coupled model is evaluated by performing ensemble simulations over the period 1500-2000 and by comparing the model results to available climate reconstructions. In these simulations, the following forcings are taken into consideration : the variations in solar irradiance, the volcanic activity, the anthropogenic emissions of CO2, and the changes in concentration of other greenhouse gases and sulphate aerosols resulting from human activities. In the future, the model will be used to investigate the evolution of climate and sea level over the third millennium.