loading page

Coupled Climate Responses to Recent Australian Wildfire and COVID-19 Emissions Anomalies Estimated in CESM2
  • +3
  • John T. Fasullo,
  • Nan A. Rosenbloom,
  • Rebecca R Buchholz,
  • Gokhan Danabasoglu,
  • David M Lawrence,
  • Jean-Francois Lamarque
John T. Fasullo
National Center for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Nan A. Rosenbloom
National Center for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)
Author Profile
Rebecca R Buchholz
National Center for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)
Author Profile
Gokhan Danabasoglu
National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
Author Profile
David M Lawrence
National Center for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)
Author Profile
Jean-Francois Lamarque
NCAR/UCAR
Author Profile

Abstract

Multiple 50-member ensemble simulations with the Community Earth System Model version 2 are performed to estimate the coupled climate responses to the 2019-2020 Australian wildfires and COVID-19 pandemic policies. The climate response to the pandemic is found to be weak generally, with net top-of-atmosphere radiative anomalies of +0.23+-0.14 W m/2driving a gradual global warming of 0.05+-0.04 K by the end of 2022. While regional anomalies are detectible in aerosol burdens and clear-sky radiation, few significant anomalies exist in other fields due to internal variability. In contrast, the simulated response to Australian wildfires is a strong and rapid cooling, peaking at -0.95+-0.15 W m/2 in late 2019 with an anomalous global cooling of 0.06+-0.04 K by mid-2020. Transport of fire aerosols throughout the Southern Hemisphere increases albedo and drives a strong interhemispheric radiative contrast, with simulated responses that are consistent generally with those to a Southern Hemisphere volcanic eruption.