Applying satellite remote sensing to predicting
1999-2000 La
Nina
Abstract
A new version of the Lamont forecast model is used to
assess the impact of TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter data on predicting
short-term climate change, with emphasis on the 1997/98 El Nino and
subsequent La Ni\na. As compared to forecasts initialized with only
wind data, the model's predictive accuracy was improved when the
altimeter sea level data are used for model initialization. This is
due
to the effectiveness of sea level data in correcting the model ocean
state. For this particular application, the effect of altimeter sea
level
observations is comparable to that of tide gauge measurements.
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