Exploring NCAR Climate Change Data Using GIS

Jennifer Boehnert: boehnert@ucar.edu
Lawrence Buja: southern@ucar.edu
Constantin Cranganu: cranganu@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Cathy Reznicek: catharine.r@mac.com
David Smith: David_Smith@redlands.edu
Michele Thornton: thorntonmm@ornl.gov
Olga Wilhelmi: olgaw@ucar.edu

Published: September 2010. Updated: June 2011.

Description

Air temperature anomaly map in the year 2030 as compared to a 1990 baseline map.

With ArcGIS and climate data from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Climate Change Scenarios GIS Data Portal, you will learn the basics of GIS-based climate modeling. First, you will calculate summer average temperatures during the growing season (June, July, and August) using simulated, present-day, climate-modeled output (1980 to 1999). Then, you will make the same calculations using projected, future, climate-modeled output (2021 to 2040). Next, you will visually compare the temperature differences for the two model runs. Finally, you will create a temperature anomaly map to highlight areas around the globe that will experience either air temperature increases or decreases in 2030 relative to 1990.



This chapter is part of the Earth Exploration Toolbook. Each chapter provides teachers and/or students with direct practice for using scientific tools to analyze Earth science data. Students should begin on the Case Study page.


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