Publication Abstracts

Cesana et al. 2026, submitted

Cesana, G.V., Y.-J. Lin, J. Wu, M. Kelley, J. Rémillard, G. Tselioudis, G.A. Schmidt, A. Arouf, G. Elsaesser, A.S. Ackerman, S. Bauer, Y. Cheng, A.M. Fridlind, and N. Nanou, 2026: Improved representation of cloud properties and feedbacks in the NASA GISS-E3 climate model. J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst., submitted.

Climate models are essential tools for understanding the Earth's climate system, and undergo continual development to improve their skill across a range of metrics. Here we evaluate the new cloud representations and their radiative feedbacks in the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS)-E3 model relative to its predecessor GISS-E2.1. The new model now incorporates a considerable reworking of the cloud micro- and macro-physics, higher vertical resolution, and changes to moist turbulence. The results show substantial improvements in cloud climatology, primarily through a more realistic simulation of low-level clouds, especially stratocumulus, leading to improved shortwave and longwave cloud radiative effects. A machine learning (ML) and observation-constrained tuning framework further improves tropical low-cloud regimes and Arctic cloud seasonality, making GISS-E3 competitive with CMIP6 models. However, persistent biases remain, including overly reflective tropical low clouds, excess high-cloud cover, and underestimated cloud cover over the Southern Ocean, highlighting limitations that parametric tuning alone cannot address. GISS-E3 exhibits a weakly positive net cloud feedback and an equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS; 2.77C) comparable to GISS-E2.1. This behavior is linked to a weak non-low cloud feedback that lies near the lower bound of both the GISS-E3 calibrated-physics ensemble (CPE) and CMIP6 models, and outside observational constraints. In contrast, the CPE members that are more consistent with observations show higher ECS values (~3.8C). These results highlight the importance of incorporating additional process-level observational constraints during both model development and tuning, particularly for high- and extratropical-cloud regimes, to better capture the mean state and cloud feedbacks", and there is no preprint link yet.

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BibTeX Citation

@unpublished{ce02300g,
  author={Cesana, G. V. and Lin, Y.-J. and Wu, J. and Kelley, M. and Rémillard, J. and Tselioudis, G. and Schmidt, G. A. and Arouf, A. and Elsaesser, G. and Ackerman, A. S. and Bauer, S. and Cheng, Y. and Fridlind, A. M. and Nanou, N.},
  title={Improved representation of cloud properties and feedbacks in the NASA GISS-E3 climate model},
  year={2026},
  journal={Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems},
  note={Manuscript submitted for publication}
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - UNPB
ID  - ce02300g
AU  - Cesana, G. V.
AU  - Lin, Y.-J.
AU  - Wu, J.
AU  - Kelley, M.
AU  - Rémillard, J.
AU  - Tselioudis, G.
AU  - Schmidt, G. A.
AU  - Arouf, A.
AU  - Elsaesser, G.
AU  - Ackerman, A. S.
AU  - Bauer, S.
AU  - Cheng, Y.
AU  - Fridlind, A. M.
AU  - Nanou, N.
PY  - 2026
TI  - Improved representation of cloud properties and feedbacks in the NASA GISS-E3 climate model
JA  - J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst.
JO  - Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems
ER  -

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