Teaching Climate Systems with EdGCM

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EdGCM map pair from Envisioning Climate Change Using a Global Climate Model Earth Exploration Toolbook activity. Image courtesy of Betsy Youngman. Click image to enlarge.

EdGCM (Educational Global Climate Modeling) provides a research-grade Global Climate Model (GCM) with a user-friendly interface that can be run on a desktop computer. This allows students to explore the subject of climate change in the same way that actual research scientists do. In the process of using EdGCM, students will become knowledgeable about a topic that will surely affect their lives, and we will better prepare the next generation of scientists who will grapple with a myriad of complex climate issues. The EdGCM home page includes links to the software (including a free demo version), video tutorials, a user manual, and electronic support forums.

Teaching Activities

• Envisioning Climate Change Using a Global Climate Model - Part of the Earth Exploration Toolbook, in this chapter, users run the climate modeling software, Educational Global Climate Modeling Suite (EdGCM), to visualize how temperature and snow coverage might change over the next 100 years.
• EdGCM: Real-Time Global Climate Modeling Research for the Classroom - This website provides general information about how to use EdGCM in the classroom.
  

Courses That Incorporate Modeling with EdGCM

• Climatology - This course is designed to help students gain a scientific understanding of the physical aspects of Earth's climate system and the factors that influence climate change. We explore the global balance of energy and transfer of radiation in the atmosphere through in-depth quantitative analysis, as well the hydrologic cycle and the general circulation of the oceans and atmosphere. Students become familiar with global climate models and learn to examine model output with an eye toward quantifying climate sensitivity and identifying feedbacks.