physics

Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory

Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory rather than just read about it. In short: The Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) is a laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR). The current director is Venkatachalam Ramaswamy.

Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory — illustration

Key takeaways

Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) is a laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR). The current director is Venkatachalam Ramaswamy. It is one of seven Research Laboratories within NOAA's OAR. GFDL is engaged in comprehensive long-lead-time research to expand our scientific understanding of the physical and chemical processes that govern the behavior of the atmosphere and the oceans as complex fluid systems. These systems can be modeled mathematically and their phenomenology can be studied by computer simulation methods. GFDL's accomplishments include the development of the first climate models to study global warming, the first comprehensive ocean prediction codes, and the first dynamical models with significant skill in hurricane track and intensity predictions. Much current research within the laboratory is focused around the development of Earth System Models for assessment of natural and human-induced climate change.

Accomplishments The first global numerical simulations of the atmosphere — defining the basic structure of the numerical weather prediction and climate models that are still in use today throughout the world. The first numerical simulation of the world ocean. The initial definition and further elaborations of many of the central issues in global warming research, including water vapor feedback, polar amplification of temperature change, summer mid-continental dryness and cloud feedback. The first coupled atmosphere-ocean climate models and the first simulations of global warming using these models (including the above feedback processes and the potential weakening of the Atlantic overturning circulation). The development of a state-of-art hurricane model and its transfer to operations in the NOAA National Weather Service and the Navy.

Scientific divisions The GFDL has a diverse community of about 300 researchers, collaborators and staff, with many from Britain, India, China, Japan, France, and other countries around the world. The laboratory is currently organized into several scientific divisions (listed alphabetically below). There is also a large group of scientific programmers known as the Modeling Systems Division, as well as a large computer support group.

Atmospheric Physics Current head: Venkatachalam Ramaswamy This divisions goal is to employ numerical models and observations of the Earth System to characterize and quantify atmospheric physical processes, particularly those involving greenhouse gases, aerosols, water vapor, and clouds, and their roles in atmospheric general circulation, weather and climate.

Biogeochemistry, Atmospheric Chemistry, and Ecosystems Current head: John P. Dunne This divisions goal is to develop and use the GFDL’s earth system models to create a more comprehensive understanding of the interactions between physical, chemical, and ecological drivers and feedbacks on the earth system.

Ocean and Cryosphere Current head: Rong Zhang This divisions goal is to conduct leading research to understand ocean and cryosphere changes and variability; their interactions with weather, climate, sea level, and ecosystems; and advance prediction and projection of future changes.

Seasonal-to-Decadal Variability and Predictability Current head: Thomas L. Delworth This divisions goal is to improve our understanding of climate variability, predictability and change on time scales ranging from seasonal to multidecadal. This includes internal variability of the coupled climate system, and the response to changing radiative forcing.

Weather and Climate Dynamics

Current head: Thomas Knutson This divisions goal is to develop innovative physical and dynamical components for the next generation of earth system models, with special emphasis on high resolution (1–25 km) atmospheric model development.

Facilities The GFDL is located at Princeton University's Forrestal Campus in Princeton, NJ. Since March 2011, the GFDL no longer possesses an on-site supercomputer. They instead utilize a massively parallel Cray supercomputer with over 140,000 processor cores which is currently located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This contrasts from their previous systems architecture, which consisted of eight Silicon Graphics Altix computers, each housing 1024 processor cores. Hardware updates occur on average, every 18 months. The GFDL has been using high-performance computing systems to perform numerical modeling since the 1950s.

Alumni[12] Joseph Smagorinsky: GFDL's first director Jerry D. Mahlman: GFDL's second director Ants Leetmaa: GFDL's third director Isaac Held Kirk Bryan (oceanographer) Syukuro Manabe Yoshio Kurihara Kikuro Miyakoda Isidoro Orlanski Gareth Williams Frank Lipps Abraham Oort

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory

In research: Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Oceanographic organizations, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, Organizations based in Princeton, New Jersey, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in simple terms?

Why does Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory.