ALBERT

Description: One of the controlling factors of NEE that is highly sensitive to changes in climate is fire activity. Here we present results form a transient integration with the fully coupled MPI- Earth System Model (MPI-ESM) of the Max-Planck-Institute for Meteorology covering the last 6000 years. The model comprises dynamical components for atmosphere, ocean, and biosphere including an approach to simulate fire dynamics. The simulation is analyzed with a focus on land carbon and fire dynamics. A range of observational products is used to constrain the models ability to simulate fire distribution and changes in fire regimes over the course of the last 6000 years. On the global land scale, the model run shows a small decrease of the global mean temperature and a decline in annual precipitation. For the land carbon storage there is a significant decrease. On the regional scale, the effect on temperature and precipitation due to changes in the orbital parameters with time is much stronger. A shift of the tropical rain belt combined with changes in vegetation is simulated. Striking is for example a reduction in the vegetation cover in central East Asia over the last 6000 years with a subsequent decreasing trend in land carbon. Related to these climatic changes the fire activity is changing as well. We simulate a reduction of 5% in annual global burned area within the last 6000 years. Regionally, the simulation points out trends in the fire activity corresponding to the changes in vegetation shifts: e.g. there is an increase of ~ +15% in central East Asia and a reduction of about 20% in tropical West Africa in burned area mainly a result of the redistribution of fuel abundance. Simulated changes in fire activity are compared to fire activity records reported in the global charcoal database (Power et al., 2008) and levoglucosan values out of ice cores. A special focus of the analysis will lie on an assessment of correlation between fire activity and large-scale climate indexes (e.g. ENSO, NAO). Focusing on the last 100 yrs the modeled variability is checked against a reconstruction of a yearly global fire history (Mouillot et al., 2005). This comparison points out regions with a significant influence of anthropogenic disturbed fires, which are not represented in the ESM, but play a major role in the last few decades.

Description: Orbital forcing does not only exert direct insolation effects, but also alters climate indirectly through feedback mechanisms that modify atmosphere and ocean dynamics and meridional heat and moisture transfers. We investigate the regional effects of these changes by detailed analysis of atmosphere and ocean circulation and heat transports in a coupled atmosphere-ocean-sea ice-biosphere general circulation model (ECHAM5/JSBACH/MPI-OM). We perform long term quasi equilibrium simulations under pre-industrial, mid-Holocene (6000 years before present – yBP), and Eemian (125 000 yBP) orbital boundary conditions. Compared to pre-industrial climate, Eemian and Holocene temperatures show generally warmer conditions at higher and cooler conditions at lower latitudes. Changes in sea-ice cover, ocean heat transports, and atmospheric circulation patterns lead to pronounced regional heterogeneity. Over Europe, the warming is most pronounced over the north-eastern part in accordance with recent reconstructions for the Holocene. We attribute this warming to enhanced ocean circulation in the Nordic Seas and enhanced ocean-atmosphere heat flux over the Barents Shelf in conduction with retreat of sea ice and intensified winter storm tracks over northern Europe.