The APARC (Atmospheric Processes And their Role in Climate, formerly SPARC) Reanalysis Intercomparion Project (A-RIP) is a coordinated acitvity that aims to compare all (or some of the newer) reanalysis data sets for various key diagnostics; understand the causes of differences among reanalyses; provide guidance on the appropriate usage of various reanalysis products in scientific studies; and connect such activities with future improvements in the reanalysis products by establishing collaborative links between the reanalysis centres and the SPARC community. A-RIP focuses on reanalysis output in the stratosphere, upper troposphere and lower mesosphere.
The role of BIRA-IASB within A-RIP is to use the BASCOE CTM as a transfer tool to evaluate meteorogical reanalysis. In particular, Chabrillat et al., (2018) contributed to the previous phase of A-RIP (S-RIP) with an evaluation of the mean age of air in five meteorological reanalyses: ERA-Interim, MERRA, MERRA-2, JRA-55 and CFSR. In addition, BIRA-IASB participated to Chapter 5 (Brewer-Dobson Circulation) of the S-RIP final report (SPARC, 2022).
References:
Chabrillat, S., Vigouroux, C., Christophe, Y., Engel, A., Errera, Q., Minganti, D., Monge-Sanz, B. M., Segers, A., and Mahieu, E.: Comparison of mean age of air in five reanalyses using the BASCOE transport model. Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 14715-14735, doi:10.5194/acp-18-14715-2018, 2018.SPARC, 2022: SPARC Reanalysis Intercomparison Project (S-RIP) Final Report.
SPARC, 2022: SPARC Reanalysis Intercomparison Project (S-RIP) Final Report. Masatomo Fujiwara, Gloria L. Manney, Lesley J. Gray, and Jonathon S. Wright (Eds.), SPARC Report No. 10, WCRP-6/2021, doi: 10.17874/800dee57d13, available at www.sparc-climate.org/publications/sparc-reports.
