Events

Idealised UM (iUM) workshop

Event details

What is the event about:

We are hosting a one-day workshop focused on the modelling of planetary atmospheres. In particular, trying to build a community connecting researchers working on Earth's climate with those exploring the climates of exoplanets.

Theme:

This workshop has three aims.

  • The first goal is to begin to connect the UK community modelling planetary atmospheres, ranging from our own planet to exotic exoplanets. This is primarily to try and foster collaborations (and create a strong national `voice’), but also to try to build genuine connections between the study of exoplanets, and research into our own climate.
  • The second goal is to try to both widen and strengthen the community using the UK Met Office software, the Unified Model (UM), to perform this research.
  • The final goal, is to explore how the Met Office and academic partners can work together to demonstrate the wider impact of our research.

Background:

The UK is the home to a significant body of excellent research on the Earth’s climate, of which the UK Met Office is a huge contributor. The detection, and subsequent characterisation of exoplanet atmospheres presents an excellent opportunity to grow a strong theoretical UK community modelling these targets, and combining the lessons learned with those gleaned in understanding of our own climate.

Practically, the UM itself has been used to model planets other than Earth in the past. However, recent systems implemented by the Met Office, and adaptations made in partnership with the University of Exeter, have greatly improved the development environment as well as the flexibility of the model. Additionally, the idealised part of the UM is about to be optimised and therefore input from academics regarding possible uses and capabilities of the model is timely. Moreover, the next evolution of the UM, LFRic is in development, and timely academic input could help maximise the community uptake of this model.

Programme:

Time Topic and title Chair
09.30 Arrival and registration (tea and coffee available.)  
09.50

Session 1: Academic Projects (15 mins presentation, 5 mins questions)

Welcome: growing an iUM community

Dr James Manners, Honorary Fellow, University of Exeter & Senior Research Scientist, UK Met Office.

 James Manners
10.00 GCMs for modelling Earth in the deep past and far future
Professor Andy Watson, Royal Society Research Professor, University of Exeter.		  
10.25 Venus and Idealised Exoplanets
Professor Peter Read, Professor of Physics, University of Oxford.		  
10.50 Jupiter’s zonal jets and turbulent eddies: the importance of moist convective processes on a global scale
Dr Roland Young, Postdoctoral Research Assistant, University of Oxford.		  
11.15 Tea and coffee break  
11.45 Towards the identification of testable biosignatures using UKCA and the UM planet simulator
Jack Yates, First Year PhD Student, University of Edinburgh.		 Nathan Mayne
12.10 Model Hierarchies for Earth and Other Planets
Professor Geoffrey Vallis, Professor of Mathematics, University of Exeter.		  
12.35 Extended Discussion: potential projects, collaborations & modelling requirements  
13.00 Finger buffet lunch  
14.00

Session 2: Using the UM (15 mins presentation, 5 mins questions)

A UM system overview: shared repository etc.
Dr Stuart Whitehouse, Senior Scientific Software Engineer, UK Met Office.

 Paul Earnshaw
14.25 The iUM applied to exoplanets
Ben Drummond, Third year PhD student, University of Exeter.		  
14.50 What’s next for the Unified Model 100 years after L F Richardson?
Dr Nigel Wood, Head of Dynamics Research UK Met Office, and Honorary Visiting Professor at the University of Exeter.		  
15.15 Extended Discussion: using the UM for academic research & shaping LFRic  
15.40 Tea and coffee break  
16.10 Routes to Impact: gathering data
Dr Nathan Mayne, Senior Lecturer in Astrophysics, University of Exeter.		 Nathan Mayne
16.40 Extended Discussion: demonstrating impact  
17.00 Close: next step beyond MOAP?
Dr Nathan Mayne, Senior Lecturer in Astrophysics, University of Exeter.		  
17.15 Close of event  

Registration:

Initially, registration for this workshop is by invitation only, however if you are interested in attending or have any questions please contact research-events@exeter.ac.uk.

The Met Office Unified Model (MetUM) is the numerical modelling system developed and used at the Met Office.

Location:

Innovation Centre