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CLIPC: Constructing Europe's Climate Information Portal

CLIPC provides access to Europe's climate data and information.

Glossary

CLIPC uses several glossaries for explaining terminology in use in the website and applications.

The terms from these glossaries have been incorporated into this portal. For instance where terms in the portal are underlined hovering your mouse over the term will produce a pop up box with the definition of the term. 

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a
AccuracyClimate4ImpactThe average distance between a set of measurements and the ‘true’ value of the object being measured. For climate prediction this can be defined as the average distance between a set of forecasts and an estimate of the observational reference.
ADAGUCEUPORIASAtmospheric data access for the geospatial user community. Read more on the ADAGUC Website.
AdaptationIPCCThe process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects. In human systems, adaptation seeks to moderate harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate and its effects.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Adaptation capacityIPCCThe ability of systems, institutions, humans, and other organisms to adjust to potential damage, to take advantage of opportunities, or to respond to consequences.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
AerosolIPCCA suspension of airborne solid or liquid particles, with a typical size between a few nanometres and 10 micrometres that reside in the atmosphere for at least several hours. For convenience the term aerosol, which includes both the particles and the suspendig gas, is often used in its plural form to mean aerosol particles. Aerosols may be of either natural or anthropogenic origin. Aerosols may influence climate in several ways: directly through scattering and absorbing radiation, and indirectly by acting as cloud condensation nuclei or modifying the optical properties and lifetime of clouds.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
AlbedoIPCCThe fraction of solar radiation reflected by a surface or object, often expressed as a percentage. Snow-covered surfaces have a high albedo, the albedo of soils ranges from high to low, and vegetation-covered surfaces and oceans have a low albedo. The Earth's planetary albedo varies mainly through varying cloudiness, snow, ice, leaf area and land cover changes.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
AMIPIPCCAtmospheric Model Intercomparison Project

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
AnomaliesClimate4Impactthese represent the departures of specific measurements and/or forecasts from their long-term climatological values. Anomalies describe how much a specific variable differs from its normal state.
AnthropogenicIPCCResulting from or produced by human activities.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
AOGCMEUPORIASCoupled Atmosphere-Ocean GCMs
ASCIIIPCCAmerican Standard Code for Information Interchange. ASCII is a character encoding scheme

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
AtmosphereIPCCThe gaseous envelope surrounding the Earth. The dry atmosphere consists almost entirely of nitrogen (78.1% volume mixing ratio) and oxygen (20.9% volume mixing ratio), together with a number of trace gases, such as argon (0.93% volume mixing ratio), helium and addiatively active greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (0.035% volume mixing ratio) and ozone. In addition, the atmosphere contains the greenhouse gas water vapour, whose amounts are highly variable but typically around 1% volume mixing ratio. the atmoshere also contains clouds and aerosols.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
 
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BADCIPCCBritish Atmospheric Data Centre

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://badc.nerc.ac.uk/
Baseline/ReferenceIPCCThe baseline (or reference) is the state against which change is measured. A baseline period is the period relative to which anomalies are computed. The baseline concentration of a trace gas is that measured at a location not influenced by local anthropogenic emissions. In the context of transformation pathways, the term 'baseline scenarios' refers to scenarios that are based on the assumption that no mitigation policies or measures will be implemented beyond those that are already in force and/or are legislated or planned to be adopted. Baseline scenarios are not intended to be predictions of the future, but rather counterfactual constructions that can serve to highlight the level of emissions that would occur without further policy effort. Typically, baseline scenarios are then compared to mitigation scenarios that are constructed to meet different goals for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, atmosphereic concentrations, or temperature change. The term 'baseline scenario; is used interchangeably with 'reference scenario' and 'no policy scenario'. In much of the literature the term is also synonymous with the term 'business-as-usual (BAU) scenario', although the term 'BAU' has fallen out of favour because the idea of business-as-usual in century-long socioeconomic projections is hard to fathom.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
BiasClimate4ImpactThe average difference between the values of the forecasts and the observations on the long term. While accuracy is always positive the bias could be either positive of negative depending on the situation.
Bias-correctionClimate4Impact(or ‘bias-adjustment’) - methods to ‘calibrate’ model simulations to ensure their statistical properties are similar to those of the corresponding observed values.
BiosphereIPCCThe part of the Earth system comprising all ecosystems and living organisms, in the atmosphere, on land (terrestrial biosphere) or in the oceans (marine biosphere), including derived dead organic matter, such as litter, soil organic matter and oceanic detritus.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Black carbon (BC)IPCCOperationally defined aerosol species based on measurement of light absorption and chemical reactivity and/or thermal stability. It is sometimes referred to as soot. BC is mostly formed by the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuels, and biomass but it also occurs naturally. It stays in the atmosphere only for days or weeks. It is the most strongly light-absorbing component of particulate matter (PM) and has a warming effect by absorbing heat into the atmosphere and reducing the albedo when deposited on ice or snow.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
 
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CalibrationClimate4Impactin climate predictions this is the procedure to make the forecasts reliable. This oftern comes at the cost of the accuracy and the skill of the forecasts.
Calibration uncertaintyCLIPCThe choice of the calibration period introduces uncertainty. The length but also the choice of years for the calibration relate to the relationship which is build between observation and simulation data. This issue is related to the non-stationarity of the bias - it can be changing over time. Statistical methods, however, assume stationarity of biases over time. Therefore, there is a need to maximise the calibration period in order to reduce this part of the uncertainty.
Capacity BuildingIPCCThe practice of enhancing the strengths and attributes of, and resources available to, an individual, community, society, or organisation to respond to change.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Carbon dioxide (CO2)IPCCCO2 is a naturally occurring gas, also a by-product of burning fossil fuels from fossil carbon deposits, such as oil, gas and coal, of burning biomass and of land use changes and of industrial processes (e.g., cement production). It is the principle anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) that affects the Earth's radiative balance. It is the reference gas against which other greenhouse gases are measured and therefore has a Global Warming Potential of 1.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
CGEIPCCConsultative Group of Experts

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
CIESINIPCCCentre for International Earth Science Information Network

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://ciesin.columbia.edu/
CISLIPCCComputational Information Systems Laboratory

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www2.cisl.ucar.edu/
ClimateIPCCClimate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the average weather, or more rigorously, as the statistical description in terms of the mean and variability of relevant quantities over a period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years. The classical period for averaging these variables is 30 years, as defined by the World Meteorological Organization. The relevant quantities are most often surface variables such as temperature, precipitation and wind. Climate in a wider sense is the state, including a statistical description, of the climate system.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
ClimateClimate4ImpactClimate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the average weather, or more rigorously, as the statistical description in terms of the mean and variability of relevant quantities over a period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years. The classical period for averaging these variables is 30 years, as defined by the World Meteorological Organization. The relevant quantities are most often surface variables such as temperature, precipitation and wind. Climate in a wider sense is the state, including a statistical description, of the climate system
Climate ChangeIPCCClimate change refers to a change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g., by using statistical tests) by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may be due to natural internal processes or external forcings such as modulations of the solar cycles, volcanic eruptions and persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use. Note that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), in its Article 1, defines climate change as: 'a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods'. The UNFCCC thus makes a distinction between climate change attributable to human activities altering the atmospheric composition, and climate variability attributable to natural causes.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate Change CommitmentIPCCDue to the thermal inertia of the ocean and slow processes in the cryosphere and land surfaces, the climate would continue to change even if the atmospheric composition were held fixed at todays values. Past change in atmospheric composition leads to a committed climate change, which continues for as long as a radiative imbalance persists and until all components of the climate system have adjusted to a new state. The further change in temperature after the composition of the atmosphere is held constant is referred to as the constant composition temperature commitment or simply committed warming or warming commitment. Climate change commitment includes other future changes, for example in the hydrological cycle, in extreme weather events, in extreme climate events, and in sea level change. The constant emission commitment is the committed climate change that would result from keeping anthropogenic emissions constant and the zero emission commitment is the climate change commitment when emissions are set to zero.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate forecastClimate4Impactis the result of an attempt to produce (starting from a particular state of the climate system) an estimate of the actual evolution of the climate in the future, for example, at seasonal, interannual or decadal time scales. Since the future evolution of the climate system may be highly sensitive to initial conditions, such predictions are usually probabilistic in nature. See also Climate projection, Climate scenario, Model initialization and Predictability
Climate ImpactIPCCSee Impact Assessment
Climate Model (spectrum or hierarchy)IPCCA numerical representation of the climate system based on the physical, chemical, and biological properties of its components, their interactions and feedback processes, and accounting for all or some of its known properties. The climate system can be represented by models of varying complexity, that is, for any one component or combination of components a spectrum or hierarchy of models can be identified, differing in such aspects as the number of spatial dimensions, the extent to which physical, chemical, or biological processes are explicitly represented, or the level at which empirical parameterisations are involved. Coupled Atmosphere-Ocean General Circulation Models (AOGCMs) provide a comprehensive representation of the climate system that is near or at the most comprehensive end of the spectrum currently available. There is an evolution towards more complex models with interactive chemistry and biology. Climate models are applied, as a research tool, to study and simulate the climate, and for operational purposes, including monthly, seasonal, and interannual climate predictions.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate model simulationsClimate4Impactthese are numerical solutions of sets of equations that represent the most relevant processes describing the climate system. Climate models can be of very different levels of complexity but the most elaborated ones appear to be able to realistically reproduce the key meteorological and climatological phenomena.
Climate PredictionIPCCA climate prediction or climate forecast is the result of an attempt to produce (starting from a particular state of the climate system) an estimate of the actual evolution of the climate in the future, for example, at seasonal, interannual or long-term time scales. Because the future evolution of the climate system may be highly sensitive to initial conditions, such predictions are usually probabilistic in nature.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate predictionClimate4Impactis the result of an attempt to produce (starting from a particular state of the climate system) an estimate of the actual evolution of the climate in the future, for example, at seasonal, interannual or decadal time scales. Since the future evolution of the climate system may be highly sensitive to initial conditions, such predictions are usually probabilistic in nature. See also Climate projection, Climate scenario, Model initialization and Predictability
Climate ProjectionIPCCA climate projection is the simulated response of the climate system to a scenario of future emission or concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and aerosols, generally derived using climate models. Climate projections are distinguished from climate predictions in order to emphasize that climate projections depend upon the emission/concentration/radiative forcing scenario used, which are based on assumptions concerning, for example, future socioeconomic and technological developments that may or may not be realised.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate ScenarioIPCCA plausible and often simplified representation of the future climate, based on an internally consistent set of climatological relationships that has been constructed for explicit use in investigating the potential consequences of anthropogenic climate change, often serving as input to impact models. Climate projections often serve as the raw material for constructing climate scenarios, but climate scenarios usually require additional information such as about the observed current climate.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate servicesClimate4ImpactClimate services involve the production, translation, transfer, and use of climate knowledge and information for decision making, policy and planning. The provision of climate information (observational, forecasts or projections) in a way that is relevant to climate-sensitive users, can inform decisions and can reduce the risk of misinterpretation.
Climate SystemIPCCThe climate system is the highly complex system consisting of five major components: the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the cryosphere, the lithosphere and the biosphere, and the interactions between them. The climate system evolves in time under the influence of its own internal dynamics and because of external forcings such as volcanic eruptions, solar variations and anthropogenic forcings such as the changing composition of the atmosphere and land use change.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Climate variabilityClimate4ImpactClimate variability refers to variations in the mean state and other statistics (such as standard deviations, the occurrence of extremes, etc.) of the climate on all spatial and temporal scales beyond that of individual weather events. Variability may be due to natural internal processes within the climate system (internal variability), or to variations in natural or anthropogenic external forcing (external variability ). See also Climate change
ClimatologyClimate4Impactcan be defined as the science of climate, but is also used in the meaning of the normal state such as a base line over the normal period. Climatology is often taken as the mean value for a given month over, for example, 1961-1990.
CMIPIPCCCoupled Model Intercomparison Project

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
CMIP5IPCCFifth Coupled Model Intercomparison Project

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://cmip-pcmdi.llnl.gov/cmip5/
CMIP5EUPORIASCoupled Model Intercomparison Project - Phase 5
ConfidenceClimate4ImpactThe validity of a finding based on the type, amount, quality, and consistency of evidence (e.g., mechanistic understanding, theory, data, models, expert judgment) and on the degree of agreement. Confidence is expressed qualitatively (Mastrandrea et al., 2010).
Control RunIPCCA model run carried out to provide a baseline for comparison with climate-change experiments. The control run uses constant values for the radiative forcing due to greenhouse gases and anthropogenic aerosols appropriate to pre-industrial conditions.

http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/glossary/ar4-wg2.pdf
CORDEXIPCCCoordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.cordex.org
CRUIPCCClimatic Research Unit

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.cru.uea.ac.uk/
CSVIPCCComma Separated Values. CSV files store tabular data in plain-text form.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
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Data assimilation uncertaintyCLIPCThe changing mix of observations, and biases in observations and models, can introduce spurious variability and trends into reanalysis output. Variables relating to the hydrological cycle, such as precipitation and evaporation, should be used with extreme caution. More information: https://climatedataguide.ucar.edu/climate-data/atmospheric-reanalysis-overview-comparison-tables
Degree of confidenceCLIPCThe degree of confidence defines the degree to which we trust an outcome - no matter if this outcome is a climate impact indicator derived from surface observations, re-analysis, simulations or projections describing the bio-physical or socio-economic impact of climate impact. The degree of confidence results from ‘evidence and agreement’ of the datasets used for a selected climate impact indicator and what ‘type of method’ is used for the calculation of it.
DKRZIPCCDeutsches Klimarechensentrum / German Climate Computing Centre

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.dkrz.de/
DOIIPCCDigital Object Identifier. The DOI system provides a technical and social infrastructure for the registration and use of persistent interoperable identifiers for use on digital networks. More about DOI.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
DownscalingClimate4ImpactDownscaling is a method that derives local- to regional-scale (10 to 100 km) information from larger-scale models or data analyses. Two main methods exist: dynamical downscaling and empirical/statistical downscaling. The dynamical method uses the output of regional climate models, global models with variable spatial resolution or high-resolution global models. The empirical/statistical methods develop statistical relationships that link the large-scale atmospheric variables with local/regional climate variables. In all cases, the quality of the driving model remains an important limitation on the quality of the downscaled information.
DRSIPCCData Reference Syntax. DRS is a commmon naming system used in the CMIP5 archive to identify datasets. More about DRS.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://cmip-pcmdi.llnl.gov/cmip5/docs/cmip5_data_reference_syntax.pdf
DVDIPCCDigital Video Disk

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
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E-OBSEUPORIASE-OBS is a daily gridded observational dataset for precipitation, temperature and sea level pressure in Europe based on ECA&D information. The full dataset covers the period 1950-01-01 until present. It has originally been developed as part of the ENSEMBLES project (EU-FP6) and is now maintained and elaborated as part of the UERRA project (EU-FP7).
Earth System ModelIPCCEarth System Model, see Climate Model.
Earth System ModelsEUPORIASThe scientific knowledge has now progressed to the level where global climate models are being replaced by Earth System Models signifying that the models now embrace more components and processes than the physical atmosphere-ocean components traditionally used to describe the climate. For a detailed inventory and/or comparison of the various Earth System components in any of the current generation of GCMs please refer to Comparator.
Effective Radiative ForcingIPCCSometimes internal drivers are still treated as forcings even though they result from the alteration in climate, for example aerosol or greenhouse gas changes in paleoclimates. The traditional radiative forcing is computed with all tropospheric properties held fixed at their unperturbed values, and after allowing for stratospheric temperature, if perturbed, to readjust to radiative-dynamical equilibrium. Radiative forcing is called instantaneous if no change in stratospheric temperature is accounted for. The radiative forcing once rapid adjustments are accounted for is termed the effective radiative forcing. For the purposes of the WG1 AR5 report, radiative forcing is further defined as the change relative to the year 1750 and, unless otherwise noted, refers to a global and annual average value. Radiative forcing is not to be confused with cloud radiative forcing, which describes an unrelated measure of the impact of clouds on the radiative flux at the top of the atmosphere.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)Climate4ImpactThe term El Nino was initially used to describe a warm-water current that periodically flows along the coast of Ecuador and Peru, disrupting the local fishery. It has since become identified with a basin-wide warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean east of the dateline. This oceanic event is associated with a fluctuation of a global-scale tropical and subtropical surface pressure pattern called the Southern Oscillation. This coupled atmosphere-ocean phenomenon, with preferred time scales of 2 to about 7 years, is collectively known as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation. It is often measured by the surface pressure anomaly difference between Darwin and Tahiti and the sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific. During an ENSO event, the prevailing trade winds weaken, reducing upwelling and altering ocean currents such that the sea surface temperatures warm, further weakening the trade winds. This event has a great impact on the wind, sea surface temperature, and precipitation patterns in the tropical Pacific. It has climatic effects throughout the Pacific region and in many other parts of the world, through global teleconnections. The cold phase of ENSO is called La Nina.
Emission ScenarioIPCCA plausible representation of the future development of emissions of substances that are potentially radiatively active (e.g., greenhouse gases, aerosols), based on a coherent and internally consistent set of assumptions about driving forces (such as demographic and socioeconomic development, technological change, energy and land use) and their key relationships. Concentration scenarios, derived from emission scenarios, are used as input to a climate model to compute climate projections. In IPCC (1992) a set of emission scenarios was presented which were used as a basis for the climate projections in IPCC (1996). These emission scenarios are referred to as the IS92 scenarios. In the IPCC Special Report on Emission Scenarios (Nakicenovic and Swart, 2000) a new set of emission scenarios, the so-called SRES scenarios, were published, some of which were used, among others, as a basis for the climate projections presented in Chapters 9 to 11 of IPCC (2001) and Chapters 10 and 11 of IPCC (2007). New emission scenarios for climate change, the four Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs), were developed for, but independently of, the fifth IPCC assessment.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
ENESEUPORIASEuropean Network for Earth System Modeling. The undersigned institutions agree to create a European Network for Earth System Modelling -ENES- with the purpose of working together and cooperating towards the development of a European network for Earth system modelling. These institutions include university departments, research centres, meteorological services, computer centres and industrial partners. Read more on the ENES website.
EnsembleIPCCA collection of model simulations characterising a climate prediction or projection. Differences in initial conditions and model formulation result in different evolutions of the modelled system and may give information on uncertainty associated with model error and error in initial conditions in the case of climate forecasts and on uncertainty associated with model error and with internally generated climate variability in the case of climate projections.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
EnsembleClimate4ImpactA collection of model simulations characterizing a climate prediciton (or projection). Differences in the initial conditions and model formulations result in different evolution of the modelled systems and may give information on uncertaitny associated with model error, error in the initial conditions and with the internally generate climate variability
EnsemblesEUPORIASRunning a GCM model multiple times only changing the initial conditions can at times simulate extended periods of quite different climate change signals for a specified area. This is due to the natural variability of the climate system, and it is impossible to state which circulation change is more likely to occur in the future. This limits our ability to place tight bounds on estimates of regional climate change
EPICICEUPORIASENES Portal Interface for the Climate Impact Communities (EPICIC). EPICIC is oriented towards climate change impact modellers, impact and adaptation consultants, as well as other experts using climate change data. In short, climate for impact portal: http://climate4impact.eu/
Equilibrium and Transient Climate ExperimentIPCCAn equilibrium climate experiment is a climate model experiment in which the model is allowed to fully adjust to a change in radiative forcing. Such experiments provide information on the difference between the initial and final states of the model, but not on the time-dependent response. If the forcing is allowed to evolve gradually according to a prescribed emission scenario, the time-dependent response of a climate model may be analysed. Such an experiment is called a transient climate experiment.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
ESGEUPORIASEarth System Grid. The Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) is an international collaboration with a current focus on serving the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) and supporting climate and environmental science in general. The ESGF grew out of the larger Global Organization for Earth System Science Portals (GO-ESSP) community, and reflects a broad array of contributions from the collaborating partners
ESGFEUPORIASThe Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) is an international collaboration with a current focus on serving the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) and supporting climate and environmental science in general. The ESGF grew out of the larger Global Organization for Earth System Science Portals (GO-ESSP) community, and reflects a broad array of contributions from the collaborating partners.
ESSENCEEUPORIASEnsemble SimulationS of Extreme weather events under Nonlinear Climate changE is a project that is conducted to explore the changing climate and its variability. A large-member ensemble of runs with a state-of-the-art climate model is performed to investigate the range of possible future climate change. Read more on ESSENCE
ExposureIPCCThe presence of people, livelihoods, species or ecosystems, environmental services and resources, infrastructure, or economic, social, or cultural assets in places that could be adversely affected. See also Vulnerability.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Extended Concentration Pathways (ECPs)IPCCSee Representative Concentration Pathway

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
External human forcingCLIPCInfluence of many possible human-induced trajectories that future emissions of greenhouse gases and aerosol precursors might take, and influence of future trends in land use.
external natural forcingCLIPCExternally forced climate variations may be due to changes in natural forcing factors, such as solar irradiance or volcanic aerosols.
Extreme (weather or climate) eventClimate4Impactthe occurrence of a value of a weather or climate variable above (or below) a threshold value near the upper (or lower) ends (“tails”) of the range of observed values of the variable. Extreme events comprise a facet of climate variability under stable or changing climate conditions.
Extreme Climate EventIPCCSee Extreme Weather Event

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
Extreme Weather EventIPCCAn extreme weather event is an event that is rare at a particular place and time of year. Definitions of rare vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile of a probability density function estimated from observations. By definition, the characteristics of what is called extreme weather may vary from place to place in an absolute sense. When a pattern of extreme weather persists for some time, such as a season, it may be classed as an extreme climate event, especially if it yields an average or total that is itself extreme (e.g., drought or heavy rainfall over a season).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
 
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FAOIPCCFood and Agriculture Organisation (UN)

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.fao.org/
FloodClimate4ImpactThe overflowing of the normal confines of a stream or other body of water, or the accumulation of water over areas that are not normally submerged. Floods include river (fluvial) floods, flash floods, urban floods, pluvial floods, sewer floods, coastal floods, and glacial lake outburst floods.
Forecast timeEUPORIAS(or leadtime) is the time elapsed since the beginning of the forecast. This can be a range of time (e.g. month 2-4). Used in the context of seasonal to decadal prediction.
Forecast timeClimate4Impactit the time elapsed since the beginning of the forecast. This can be a range of time (e.g. month2-4).
ForecastsClimate4Impactclimate forecast is a statement about the future evaluation of some aspects of the climate system encompassing both forced and internally generated components. Climate forecasts are generally used as a synonym of climate predictions. At the same time some authors like to use prediction in a more general sense while referring to forecasts as to a specific prediction which provides guidance on future climate and can take the form of quantitative outcomes, maps or text.
Fossil FuelsIPCCCarbon-based fuels from fossil hydrocarbon deposits, including coal, peat, oil, and natural gas.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
 
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GblCMIPCCGlobal Climate Model. See Climate Model.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
GCMEUPORIASGlobal Climate Models or General Circulation Models (GCMs) are based on the general physical principles of fluid dynamics and thermodynamics. They have their origin in numerical weather prediction and they describe the interactions between the components of the global climate system: the atmosphere, the oceans and a basic description of the land surface (i.e. aspects of the biosphere and the lithosphere that are relevant for the surface energy balance). For a detailed inventory and/or comparison of the various components in any of the current generation of GCMs please refer to ES-DOC Comparator. Sometimes GCMs are referred to as Coupled Atmosphere-Ocean GCMs (AOGCM).
GCMClimate4ImpactGlobal Climate Models or General Circulation Models (GCMs) are computer codes used to solve a set of mathematical equations describing the laws of physics relevant to the atmospheric and oceanic circulation, the distribution of heat and the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and atmospheric gases and aeresols . Climate models represent an implementation of our theoretical knowledge of the climate system, describing interconnections between processes. They consist of different modules describing the atmosphere, oceans, sea-ice/snow and the land surface, and represent the world in terms of boxes stacked next to and on top of each other. The values for temperature, motion and mass are solved in each of these boxes, based on well known physical la
GDPIPCCGross Domestic Product

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
GenCMIPCCGeneral Circulation Model. See Climate Model.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
GEOTIFFIPCCGeostationary Earth Orbit Tagged Image File Format. More about GeoTIFF

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://trac.osgeo.org/geotiff
GHCN-ERSSTIPCCGlobal Historical Climatology Network - Extended Reconstructed Sea Surface Temperature. ERSST link, GHCN link.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/ersst/
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/ghcnm/
GISIPCCGeographical Information System. GIS is designed to capture, store, manipulate, analyze, manage and present geographical data.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
Global Mean Surface TemperatureIPCCAn estimate of the global mean surface air temperature. However, for changes over time, only anomalies, as departures from a climatology, are used, most commonly based on the area-weighted global average of the sea surface temperature anomaly and land surface air temperature anomaly.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Greenhouse Gas (GHG)IPCCGreenhouse gases are those gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic, that absorb and emit radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of thermal infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface, the atmosphere itself, and by clouds. This property causes the greenhouse effect. Water vapour (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and ozone (O3) are the primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere. Moreover, there are a number of entirely human-made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as the halocarbons and other chlorine- and bromine-containing substances, dealt with under the Montreal Protocol. Beside CO2, N2O and CH4, the Kyoto Protocol deals with the greenhouse gases sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and perfluorocarbons (PFCs).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
GRIBIPCCGRIdded Binary. GRIB is a mathematically concise data format commonly used in meteorology to store historical and forecast weather data.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
GZIPIPCCGNU zip. GZIP is used for file compression and decompression.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
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HadCRUT3IPCCHadley Centre/Climatic Research Unit gridded surface temperature data set version 3

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/hadobs/hadcrut3/
HindcastClimate4Impacta forecast made for a period in the past using only information available before the beginning of the forecast. A set of hindcasts can be used to bias-correct and/or caliabrate the forecast and/or provide a measure of the skill.
HTMLIPCCHyper Text Mark-up Language

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
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IAMIPCCIntegrated Assessment Model. Integrated assessment is a method of analysis that combines results and models from the physical, biological, economic, and social sciences, and the interactions among these components in a consistent framework to evaluate the status and the consequences of environmental change and the policy responses to it.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
IAMCIPCCIntegrated Assessment Modelling Consortium

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://iamconsortium.org/
IAVIPCCImpacts Adaptation and Vulnerability.

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
IGBPIPCCInternational Geosphere-Biosphere Programme

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.igbp.net/
IHDPIPCCInternational Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ihdp.unu.edu/
Illustrative scenarioIPCCA scenario that is illustrative for each of the six scenario groups reflected in the Summary for Policymakers of Nakicenovic and Swart (2000). They include four revised marker scenarios for the scenario groups A1B, A2, B1, B2, and two additional scenarios for the A1F1 and A1T groups. All scenario groups are equally sound.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Illustrative ScenarioIPCCSee Scenario (Illustrative)

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
Impact AssessmentIPCCThe practice of identifying and evaluating, in monetary and/or non-monetary terms, the effects of climate change on natural and human systems.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Impacts (Consequences, Outcomes)IPCCEffects on natural and human systems. In the WGII AR5 report, the term impacts is used primarily to refer to the effects on natural and human systems of extreme weather and climate events and of climate change. Impacts generally refer to effects on lives, livelihoods, health, ecosystems, economies, societies, cultures, services, and infrastructure due to the interaction of climate changes or hazardous climate events occurring within a specific time period and the vulnerability of an exposed society or system. Impacts are also referred to as consequences and outcomes. The impacts of climate change on geophysical systems, including floods, droughts, and sea level rise, are a subset of impacts called physical impacts.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Incomplete knowledgeCLIPCIncomplete knowledge arises from the imperfection of our knowledge. It concerns what ‘we do not know’ at this moment but might know in the future, if sufficient time and resources are available to perform additional research or collect more data. 'Incomplete knowledge' is therefore reducible.
Industrial RevolutionIPCCA period of rapid industrial growth with far-reaching social and economic consequences, beginning in England during the second half of the 18th century and spreading to Europe and later to other countries including the United States. The invention of the steam engine was an important trigger of this development. The industrial revolution marks the beginning of a strong increase in the use of fossil fuels and emissions of, in particular, fossil carbon dioxide. In the AR4 and AR5, the term pre-industrial and industrial refer, somewhat arbitrarily, to the periods before and after 1750, respectively.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Internal natural variabilityCLIPCInherent stochastic variation in climate parameters arising from chaotic non-linear processes in the climate system.
IPCCIPCCIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ipcc.ch/
IPCCEUPORIASIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The IPCC assesses the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant for the understanding of the risk of human-induced climate change.
IPCC AR5EUPORIASFifth Assessment Report (AR5) will be finalized in 2014. Compared with previous reports, the AR5 will put greater emphasis on assessing the socio-economic aspects of climate change and implications for sustainable development, risk management and the framing of a response through both adaptation and mitigation. Read more...
IPCC DataIPCCData on the DDC is provided to facilitate the timely distribution of a consistent set of up-to-date scenarios of changes in climate and related environmental and socio-economic factors for use in climate impacts assessments. The climate data availabe on the DDC includes climate observation data, climate simulation data and synthesised climate data that combines both climate observation and climate simulation data.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
IPCC-DDCIPCCIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change-Data Distribution Centre

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ipcc-data.org
IS-ENESEUPORIASInfrastructure for the European Network of Earth System Modelling IS-ENES2 is the second phase project of the distributed e-infrastructure of models, model data and metadata of the European Network for Earth System Modelling (ENES). This network gathers together the European modelling community working on understanding and predicting climate variability and change. IS-ENES2 combines expertise in climate modelling, computational science, data management and climate impacts. IS-ENES2 supports the ENES portal on which more information on community, services, models, data and computing can be found.
 
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Kyoto ProtocolIPCCThe Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted in 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, at the Third Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC. It contains legally binding commitments, in addition to those included in the UNFCCC. Countries included in Annex B of the Protocol (most Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries and countries with economies in transition) agreed to reduce their anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)) by at least 5% below 1990 levels in the commitment period 2008 to 2012. The Kyoto Protocol entered into force on 16 February 2005.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
 
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Land use and Land use ChangeIPCCLand use refers to the total arrangements, activities and inputs undertaken in a certain land cover type (a set of human actions). The term land use is also used in the sense of the social and economic purposes for which land is managed (e.g., grazing, timber extraction and conservation). Land use change refers to a change in the use or management of land by humans, which may lead to a change in land cover. Land cover and land use change may have an impact on the surface albedo, evapotranspiration, sources and sinks of greenhouse gases, or other properties of the climate system and may thus give rise to radiative forcing and/or other impacts on climate, locally or globally. See also the IPCC Report on Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry (IPCC, 2000).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
LeadtimeEUPORIAS(or forecast time) is the time elapsed since the beginning of the forecast. This can be a range of time (e.g. month 2-4). Used in the context of seasonal to decadal prediction.
LikelihoodClimate4ImpactProbabilistic estimate of the occurrence of a single event or of an outcome, for example, a climate parameter, observed trend, or projected change lying in a given range. Likelihood may be based on statistical or modeling analyses, elicitation of expert views, or other quantitative analyses.
LUCCIPCCLand Use and Land-Cover Change Programme

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
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Marker ScenarioIPCC A scenario that was originally posted in draft form on the SRES website to represent a given scenario family. The choice of markers was based on which of the initial quantifications best reflected the storyline, and the features of the specific models. Markers are no more likely than other scenarios, but are considered by the SRES writing team as illustrative of a particular storyline. They are included in revised form in Nakicenovic and Swart (2000). These scenarios received the closest scrutiny of the entire writing team and via the SRES open process. Scenarios were also selected to illustrate the other two scenario groups.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Marker ScenarioIPCCSee Scenario (Marker).

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
measurement uncertaintyCLIPCThis includes the precision of the instrument, and inhomogeneity due to changes in the observing system over time, and any bias of one observing system or sensor versus another. Related to satellite measurements, the position of the sensor plays a role which can lead to errors of the retrieved value. Moreover, the instrument calibration and ageing of the instrument lead to additional uncertainties.
MeasuresIPCCIn climate policy, measures are technologies, processes, and practices that contribute to mitigation, for example renewable energy technologies, waste minimization processes and public transport commuting practices.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
MetadataIPCCInformation about meteorological and climatological data concerning how and when they were measured, their quality, known problems and other characteristics.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Mitigation (of climate change)IPCCA human intervention to reduce the sources or enhance the sinks of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The AR5 WGIII report also assesses human interventions to reduce the sources of other substances which may contribute directly or indirectly to limiting climate change, including, for example, the reduction of particulate matter (PM) emissions that can directly alter the radiation balance (e.g., black carbon) or measures that control emissions of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides (NOx), Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and other pollutants that can alter the concentration of tropospheric ozone (O3) which has an indirect effect on the climate.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
modelling uncertaintiesCLIPCThis comprises all uncertainties resulting from incomplete understanding and representation of the system modelled, including chosen parameters in models and algorithms. This can also include uncertainty from imperfect calibration, the choice of statistical techniques and missing or simplified processes in the algorithms used to retrieve a geophysical quantity from the signal detected by a satellite sensor.
Montreal ProtocolIPCCThe Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was adapted in Montreal in 1987, and subsequently adjusted and amended in London (1990), Copenhagen (1992), Vienna (1995), Montreal (1997) and Beijing (1999). It controls the consumption and production of chlorine- and bromine-containing chemicals that destroy stratospheric ozone, such as chlorofluorocarbons, methyl chloroform, carbon tetrachloride and many others.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
MPI-MIPCCMax Planck Institute for Meteorology

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.mpimet.mpg.de
MSGEUPORIASMeteosat Second Generation (MSG) is a significantly enhanced, follow-on system to the previous generation of Meteosat (MFG). MSG consists of a series of four geostationary meteorological satellites that will operate consecutively. Read more on MSG.
 
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NASAIPCCNational Aeronautics and Space Administration

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.nasa.gov
NCARIPCCNational Centre for Atmospheric Research

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://ncar.ucar.edu
NCASIPCCNational Centre for Atmospheric Science

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ncas.ac.uk
NCSPIPCCNational Communications Support Programme (UN)

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://ncsp.undp.org/
NERCIPCCNational Environment Research Council

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.nerc.ac.uk/
North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)Climate4Impacta recurring spatial pattern of mean sea-level pressure (MSLP) over the north Atlantic region characterised by low MSLP over Iceland and high over the Azores/Lisbon. The NAO expresses climate variability associated with variations in the large-scale temperature and precipitation pattern over Northern Europe.
 
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observational constraintsCLIPCObservational constraints, and therefore the reliability of the output, can considerably vary depending on the location, time period, and variable considered.
OECDIPCCOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.oecd.org
OGCEUPORIASOpen Geospatial Consortium - Visit website
OMIEUPORIASOzone Monitoring Instrument. Read more on OMI.
OpenDAPEUPORIASOpen-source Project for a Network Data Access Protocol, is a data transport architecture and protocol widely used by earth scientists. The protocol is based on HTTP and the current specification is OPeNDAP 2.0 draft. OPeNDAP includes standards for encapsulating structured data, annotating the data with attributes and adding semantics that describe the data. The protocol is maintained by OPeNDAP.org, a publicly-funded non-profit organization that also provides free reference implementations of OPeNDAP servers and clients. [Source: Wikipedia]
OpenIDEUPORIASOpenID is an open standard that describes how users can be authenicated in a decentralized manner, eliminating the need for services to provide their own ad hoc systems and allowing the users to consolidate their digital identities. [Source: WikiPedia]
OzoneIPCCThe triatomic form of oxygen (O3), a gaseous atmospheric constituent. In the troposphere, it is created both naturally and by photochemical reactions involving gases resulting from human activities (smog). Tropospheric ozone acts as a greenhouse gas. In the stratosphere, ozone is created by the interaction between solar ultraviolet radiation and molecular oxygen (O2). Stratospheric ozone plays a dominant role in the stratospheric radiative balance. Its concentration is highest in the ozone layer.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Ozone HoleIPCCSee Ozone Layer

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
Ozone LayerIPCCThe stratosphere contains a layer in which the concentration of ozone is greatest, the so-called ozone layer. The layer extends from about 12 to 40 km above the Earth's surface. The ozone concentration reaches a maximum between about 20 and 25 km. This layer has been depleted by human emissions of chlorine and bromine compounds. Every year, during the Southern Hemisphere spring, a very strong depletion of the ozone layer takes place over the Antarctic, caused by anthropogenic chlorine and bromine compounds in combination with the specific meteorological conditions of that region. This phenomenon is called the ozone hole.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
 
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Particulate Matter (PM)IPCCVery small solid particles emitted during the combustion of biomass and fossil fuels. PM may consist of a wide variety of substances. Of greatest concern for health are particulates of diameter less than or equal to 10 nanometers, usually designated as PM10. See also Aerosol.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
PCMDIIPCCProgram for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www-pcmdi.llnl.gov/
PCMDIEUPORIASProgram for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison. PCMDI was established in 1989 at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), located in the San Francisco Bay area, in California.
PDFIPCCPortable Document Format

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
pHIPCCpH is a dimensionless measure of the acidity of water (or any solution) given by its concentration of hydrogen ions (H+). pH is measured on a logarithmic scale where pH = –log10(H+). Thus, a pH decrease of 1 unit corresponds to a 10-fold increase in the concentration of H+, or acidity.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
PhenologyIPCCThe relationship between biological phenomena that recur periodically (e.g., development stages, migration) and climate and seasonal changes.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Photochemical smogIPCCA mix of oxidizing air pollutants produced by the reaction of sunlight with primary air pollutants, especially hydrocarbons. See also Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Policies (for mitigation of or adaptation to climate change)IPCCPolicies are a course of action taken and/or mandated by a government, e.g., to enhance mitigation and adaptation. Examples of policies amied at mitigation are support mechanisms for renewable energy supplies, carbon or energy taxes, and fuel efficiency standards for automobiles. See also Measures.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Pre-IndustrialIPCCIndustrial Revolution

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
PredictabilityClimate4ImpactThe extent to which future states of a system may be predicted based on knowledge of current and past states of the system. Since knowledge of the climate system’s past and current states is generally imperfect, as are the models that utilise this knowledge to produce a climate prediction, and since the climate system is inherently nonlinear and chaotic, predictability of the climate system is inherently limited. Even with arbitrarily accurate models and observations, there may still be limits to the predictability of such a nonlinear system (AMS, 2000).
PredictionsClimate4Impactis generally used as a synonym of forecast . At the same time some authors like to use prediction in a more general sense while referring to forecasts as to a specific prediction which provides guidance on future climate and can take the form of quantitative outcomes, maps or text.
Probabilistic forecastClimate4Impacta forecast which specifies the future probability of one or more events occurring.
Probability density function (pdf)Climate4Impactprobability density function is a function that indicates the relative chances of occurrence of different outcomes of a variable. The function integrates to unity over the domain for which it is defined and has the property that the integral over a sub-domain equals the probability that the outcome of the variable lies within that sub-domain. For example, the probability that a temperature anomaly defined in a particular way is greater than zero is obtained from its PDF by integrating the PDF over all possible temperature anomalies greater than zero. Probability density functions that describe two or more variables simultaneously are similarly defined.
Processing errorsCLIPCError or uncertainty in any processing steps taken in the transformation from raw data to end product.
processing uncertaintyCLIPCAny steps taken in the transformation from raw data to an end product. This includes homogenisation, averaging, interpolating, computing indices/trends etc.
ProjectionClimate4ImpactA projection is a potential future evolution of a quantity or set of quantities, often computed with the aid of a climate model. Unlike predictions, projections are conditional on assumptions concerning, for example, future socioeconomic and technological developments that may or may not be realised. See also Climate prediction and Climate projection.
PROVIAIPCCProgramme of Research on Climate Change Vulnerability, Impacts and Adaptation

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.provia-climatechange.org/
 
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Radiative ForcingIPCCRadiative forcing is the change in the net, downward minus upward, radiative flux (expressed in Watts per square metre; W m-2) at the tropopause or top of atmosphere due to a change in an external driver of climate change, such as, for example, a change in the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) or the output of the Sun.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
RCMEUPORIASA limitation of global climate models (GCMs) is their fairly coarse horizontal resolution. For most impact studies, such as evaluation of the future risks of floods or some types of landslides, droughts etc., the society requests information at a much more detailed local scale than provided by GCMs. Simply increasing the resolution is often not feasible because of constraints in available computer resources. A viable alternative is to embed a regional climate model (RCM) of higher resolution in relevant part of the GCM domain. RCM are complementary to GCM by adding further details to global climate projections, or to study climate processes in more detail than global models allow.
RCP scenariosEUPORIASThe RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) scenarios is a new set of scenarios defined in terms of radiative forcing.
ReanalysesClimate4ImpactReanalyses are estimates of historical atmospheric, hydrographic or other climate relevant quantities, created by processing past climate data using fixed state-of-the-art weather forecasting or ocean circulation models with data assimilation techniques.
Reference DataIPCCSee Baseline

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
Regional climate models (RCMs)Climate4Impactclimate model at higher resolution over a limited area. Such models are used in downscaling global model simulations over specific regions.
ReliableClimate4ImpactA characteristic of a forecast system for which the probabilities issued for a specific event vary a proportion of times equal to the climatological frequency of the event. A reliable system which predicts, for example 50% (or 20%, or 73%) probability of rain ,should, on average, be correct 50% (or 20%, or 73%) of the times, no more, no less.
Renewable Energy (RE)IPCCAny form of energy from solar, geophysical, or biological sources that is replenished by natural processes at a rate that equals or exceeds its rate of use.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs)IPCCScenarios that include time series of emissons and concentrations of the full suite of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and aerosols and chemically active gases, as well as land use/land cover (Moss et al., 2008). The word representative signifies that each RCP provides only one of many possible scenarios that would lead to the specific radiative forcing characteristics. The term pathway emphasises that not only the long-term concentration levels are of interest, but also the trajectory taken over time to reach that outcome (Moss et al., 2010). RCPs usually refer to the portion of the concentration pathway extending up to 2100, for which Integrated Assessment Models produced corresponding emission scenarios. Extended Concentration Pathways (ECPs) describe extensions of the RCPs from 2100 to 2500 that were calculated using simple rules generated by stakeholder consultations, and do not represent fully consistent scenarios. Four RCPs produced from Integrated Assessment Models were selected from the published literature and are used in the Fifth IPCC Assessment as a basis for the climate predictions and projections presented in WGI AR5 Chapters 11 to 14: RCP2.6: One pathway where radiative forcing peaks at approximately 3 W m-2 before 2100 and then declines (the corresponding ECP assuming constant emissions after 2100); RCP4.5 and RCP6.0: Two intermediate stabilisation pathways in which radiative forcing is stabilised at approximately 4.5 W m-2 and 6.0 W m-2 after 2100 (the corresponding ECPs assuming constant concentrations after 2150); RCP8.5: One high pathway for which radiative forcing reaches greater than 8.5 W m-2 by 2100 and continues to rise for some amount of time (the corresponding ECP assuming constant emissions after 2100 and constant concentrations after 2250).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
ResolutionIPCCIn climate models, this term refers to the physical distance (meters or degrees) between each point on the grid used to compute the equations. Temporal resolution refers to the time step or the time elapsed between each model computation of the equations.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Retrospective forecastsClimate4Impacta forecast made for a period in the past using only information available before the beginning of the forecast. A set of hindcasts can be used to bias-correct and/or caliabrate the forecast and/or provide a measure of the skill.
Return valueClimate4ImpactThe highest (or, alternatively, lowest) value of a given variable, on average occurring once in a given period of time (e.g., in 10 years).
RiskClimate4Impactoften taken to be the product of the probability of an event and the severity of its consequences. In statistical terms, this can be expressed as Risk(Y)=Pr(X) C(Y|X), where Pr is the probability, C is the cost, X is a variable describing the magnitude of the event, and Y is a sector or region.
 
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sampling uncertaintyCLIPCTemporal and spatial sampling characteristics will vary depending on the type of orbit, the width of the instrument swath and its field-of-view. For example a single sensor might provide an under-sampled view in space and time and thus, the measurements may or may not capture the true variability of the observed quantity. The position of the sensor which is related to the viewing geometry plays can also lead to errors of the retrieved value.
ScenarioIPCCA plausible description of how the future may develop based on a coherent and internally consistent set of assumptions about key driving forces (e.g., rate of technological change, prices) and relationships. Note that scenarios are neither predictions nor forecasts, but are useful to provide a view of the implications of developments and actions. See also Climate scenario, Emission scenario, Representative Concentration Pathways and SRES scenarios.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Scenario FamilyIPCCScenarios that have a similar demographic, societal, economic, and technical change storyline. Four scenario families comprise the SRES scenario set: A1, A2, B1, and B2.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
scenariosEUPORIASScenarios can be thought of as stories of possible futures. They allow the description of factors that are difficult to quantify. In the context of climate change scenarios are used for the future development of factors such as governance, social structures, future population growth, technical development and agriculture. These descriptions are essential to model the future climate.
SEDACIPCCSocio-Economic Data Applications Center

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/
SensitivityIPCCThe degree to which a system or species is affected, either adversely or beneficially, by climate variability or change. The effect may be direct (e.g., a change in crop yield in response to a change in the mean, range or variability of temperature) or indirect (e.g., damages caused by an increase in the frequency of coastal flooding due to sea-level rise).

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
Shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs)IPCCCurrently, the idea of shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) is developed as a basis for new emissions and socio-economic scenarios. An SSP is one of a collection of pathways that describe alternative futures of socio-economic development in the absense of climate policy intervention. The combination of SSP-based socio-economic scenarios and Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP)-based climate projections should provide a useful integrative frame for climate impact and policy analysis.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
signal contaminationCLIPCDepending on the quantiy of focus, atmospheric effects like clouds or aerosols, or unwanted signals from the Earth's surface can significantly influence or alter the retrieved signal. For example, for optical data, a robust surface image classification can be very challenging, given the fact that approximately 50% of the Earth is covered by clouds at any time.
single sign-onEUPORIASSingle sign-on (SSO) is a property of access control of multiple related, but independent software systems. With this property a user logs in once and gains access to all systems without being prompted to log in again at each of them. [Source: Wikipedia]
SkillClimate4ImpactMeasures of the success of a prediction against observationally-based information. No single measure can summarize all aspects of forecast quality and a suite of metrics is considered. Metrics will differ for forecasts given in deterministic and probabilistic form.
Skill scoreClimate4Impacta relative measure of the quality of the forecasting system compared to the benchmark or reference forecast (e.g. climatology, persistence, etc.).
Socio-Economic ScenarioIPCCA scenario that describes a possible future in terms of population, gross domestic product (GDP), and other socio-economic factors relevant to understanding the implications of climate change. concerning future conditions in terms of population, Gross Domestic Product and other socio-economic factors relevant to understanding the implications of climate change.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
spatial representativenessCLIPCAny region of the Earth is unlikely to be evenly or densely sampled. Stations may also drop in and out over time. Regional averages can only represent the stations they are made up of. The comparison of data measured at ground stations with data collected by satellites may introduce scaling errors. The coarser the grid cell of the remotely sensed data, the more of this variability is lost. This may lead to scaling errors between remotely retrieved and in-situ observations.
SRESIPCCSpecial Report on Emission Scenarios (SRES)

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://sres.ciesin.columbia.edu/
SRESEUPORIASThe SRES scenarios are described in the IPCC Special Report on Emission Scenarios (2000). There are 40 different scenarios, each making different assumptions for future greenhouse gas pollution, land-use and other driving forces. Assumptions about future technological development as well as the future economic development are thus made for each scenario. These emissions scenarios are organized into families, A1, A2, B1, B2, which contain scenarios that are similar to each other in some respects.
SRES ScenariosIPCCSRES scenarios are emission scenarios developed by Nakicenovic and Swart (2000) and used, among others, as a basis for some of the climate projections shown in Chapters 9 to 11 of IPCC (2001) and Chapters 10 and 11 of IPCC (2007). The following terms are relevant for a better understanding of the structure and use of the set of SRES scenarios: Scenario Family, Illustrative Scenario, Marker Scenario, Storyline.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
Statistical significanceClimate4Impactdescribes the likelihood of an observation or a result resulting from pure chance. It is often used in connection with a null-hypothesis (an alternative explanation, usually such as there is no correlation or no causal relationship), and gives the odds that the null-hypothesis is correct.
StochasticityCLIPCStochasticity is an inherent property of the system and it describes the degree to which the system’s evolution is not predictable, even given perfect understanding of the system. For example, it refers to the evolution of the climate system that is due to chaotic behaviour or (quasi-)random events. This source of uncertainty is non-reducible.
StorylineIPCCA narrative description of a scenario (or family of scenarios), highlighting the main scenario characteristics, relationships between key driving forces and the dynamics of their evolution.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
StratosphereIPCCThe highly stratified region of the atmosphere above the troposphere extending from about 10 km (ranging from 9 km at high latitudes to 16 km in the tropics on average) to about 50 km altitude.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Stratospheric OzoneIPCCSee Ozone

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
t
Temperature AnomalyIPCCSee Global Mean Surface Temperature

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
temporal sampling uncertaintyCLIPCMissing data at the hourly, daily and monthly scales are very common. This will affect any analyses of daily/monthly/seasonal/annual maxima and minima, as well as averages.
Terrestrial BiosphereIPCCSee Biosphere

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
TheoryClimate4Impacta well-established fact concerning interrelations and physical laws. These include quantum physics, the general theory of relativity, Newton’s laws, the ideal gas laws, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, conservation of energy and mass and mathematical truths. Whereas theories are seen as facts, hypotheses are more tentative and speculative and are not yet well-established. NOTE: CONTROVERSIAL DEFINITION
THREDDSEUPORIASA THREDDS catalog is a way to describe an inventory of available datasets. These catalogs provide a simple hierarchical structure for organizing a collection of datasets, a means of accessing each dataset, a human understandable name for each dataset, and a structure on which further descriptive information can be placed. More info about THREDDS catalogs...
Tide GuageIPCCA device at a coastal location or deep-sea location that continuously measures the level of the sea with respect to the adjacent land. Time averaging of the sea level so recorded gives the observed secular changes of the relative sea level.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Transient Climate ExperimentIPCCSee Equilibrium and Transient Climate Experiments

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
TrendIPCCIn the AR4 and AR5 WGI reports, the word trend designates a change, generally monotonic in time, in the value of a variable.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
TrendsClimate4Impactlong-term evolution, such as climate change and global warming. Trend analysis is used to describe trends, and can involve linear or multiple regression with time as a covariate. A trend model may be a straight line (linear) or more complex (polynomial), and the long-term rate of change can be described in terms of the time derivative from the trend model.
TropopauseIPCCThe boundary between the troposphere and the stratosphere.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
TroposphereIPCCThe lowest part of the atmosphere, from the surface to about 10 km in altitude at mid-latitudes (ranging from 9 km at high latitude to 16 km in the tropics on average), where clouds and weather phenomena occur. In the troposphere, temperatures generally decrease with height. See also Stratosphere.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
Tropospheric OzoneIPCCSee Ozone

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
u
UNIPCCUnited Nations

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.un.org/
UncertaintyClimate4ImpactLack of precision or unpredictability of the exact value at a given moment in time. It does not usually imply lack of knowledge. Often, the future state of a process may not be predictable, such as a roll with dice, but the probability of finding it in a certain state may be well known (the probability of rolling a six is 1/6, and flipping tails with a coin is 1/2). In climate science, the dice may be loaded, and we may refer to uncertainties even with perfect knowledge of the odds. Uncertainties can be modelled statistically in terms of pdfs, extreme value theory and stochastic time series models.
UNEPIPCCUnited Nations Environment Programme

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.unep.org
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeIPCCThe Convention was adopted on 9 May 1992 in New York and signed at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro by more than 150 countries and the European Community. Its ultimate objective is the 'stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system'. It contains commitments for all Parties. Under the Convention, Parties included in Annex I (all OECD countries and countries with economies in transition) aim to return greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions not controlled by the Montreal Protocol to 1990 levels by the year 2000. The convention entered in force in March 1994. In 1997, the UNFCCC adopted the Kyoto Protocol.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg1/WG1AR5_AnnexIII_FINAL.pdf
http://unfccc.int/
UnpredictabilityCLIPCUnpredictability is caused by the variable behaviour of human beings or social processes. It differs from 'incomplete knowledge' because it concerns what ‘we cannot know’ and therefore cannot be reduced or changed by further research. ‘Unpredictatility’ is therefore non-reducible.
UVIPCCUltraviolet

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
 
v
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)IPCCImportant class of organic chemical air pollutants that are volatile at ambient air conditions. Other terms used to represent VOCs are hydrocarbons (HCs), reactive organic gases (ROGs) and non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs). NMVOCs are major contributors - together with nitrogen oxides (NOx), and carbon monoxide (CO) - to the formation of photochemical oxidants such as ozone.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_annex-i.pdf
VulnerabilityIPCCThe propensity or predisposition to be adversely affected. Vulnerability encompasses a variety of concepts including sensitivity or susceptibility to harm and lack of capacity to cope and adapt.

https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-AnnexII_FINAL.pdf
 
w
WCRPIPCCWorld Climate Research Programme

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.wcrp-climate.org/
WDCCIPCCWorld Data Centre for Climate

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.dkrz.de/daten/wdcc/
WGCMIPCCWorking Group on Coupled Modelling

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
WGIIPCCIPCC Working Group I: The Physical Science Basis

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ipcc-wg1.unibe.ch/
WGIIIPCCIPCC Working Group II: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ipcc-wg2.org/
WGIIIIPCCIPCC Working Group III: Mitigation of climate change

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.ipcc-wg3.de/
WMOIPCCWorld Meteorological Organisation

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html
http://www.wmo.int/
WMSEUPORIASWeb Mapping Service
WPSEUPORIASOGC Web Processing Service
WWWIPCCWorld Wide Web

http://www.ipcc-data.org/guidelines/pages/glossary/index.html