The Dynamical and Climate Tests of an Atmospheric General Circulation Model Using the Second-Order Adams-Bashforth Method

The Asselin-Robert time filter used in the leapfrog scheme can degrade the accuracy of calculations. The second-order Adams-Bashforth method with the same accuracy as the leapfrog scheme is not subject to time splitting instability. A new semi-implicit atmospheric general circulation spectral model is developed on the basis of NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research) CAM3.0 (Community Atmosphere Model3.0). In this new model, the second-order Adams-Bashforth method is used as an alternative to the leapfrog scheme, and a Crank-Nicholson scheme is incorporated for the treatment of fast gravity modes. In this paper, the new model is tested by the Held-Suarez test and an idealized baroclinic wave test. Results of the Held-Suarez test show that the second-order Adams-Bashforth model has similar climate states to those of many other global models and it converges with resolutions. Based on the idealized baroclinic wave test, the capability of di?erent time di?erencing methods for keeping the initial steady-state are compared.This convinces a better ability of the second-order Adams-Bashforth method in maintaining the stability of the initial state. Furthermore, after the baroclinic wave is triggered through overlaying the steady-state initial conditions with the zonal perturbation, the second-order Adams-Bashforth method has an excellent property of convergence, and can represent the process of the baroclinic wave development much better than the original scheme in CAM3.0. A long-term integration of the new model during the period of 1980-1999 is also carried out and compared with that of CAM3.0. It is found that due to the reduction of simulation errors of prognostic variables, the second-order Adams-Bashforth method also has a better simulation ability for the diagnostic variables, such as precipitation.