Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1647
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1647
26 Jul 2023
 | 26 Jul 2023

Opinion: Can uncertainty in climate sensitivity be narrowed further?

Steven Sherwood and Chris Forest

Abstract. After many years with little change in community views on Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity (ECS), in 2021 the IPCC concluded that it was much better known than previously, supported by a major assessment the previous year. This development underpinned increased confidence in long-term climate changes in that report. Here, we place this development in historical context, briefly assess progress since then, and discuss the challenges and opportunities for further improving our knowledge of this iconic concept. We argue that the probability distributions published in those assessments are still approximately valid; while various subsequent studies have claimed further narrowing, they have omitted important structural uncertainties that should be included. The distributions could nonetheless be narrowed in the future, particularly through better understanding of certain climate processes and paleoclimate proxies. Not all touted strategies are truly helpful, however. We also note that as increasingly strong mitigation (i.e., “net-zero”) scenarios are considered, ECS becomes less informative about future climate change compared to other factors such as aerosol radiative forcing, carbon cycle and vegetation processes, and influences on regional change such as ocean dynamics.

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

29 Feb 2024
| Highlight paper
Opinion: Can uncertainty in climate sensitivity be narrowed further?
Steven C. Sherwood and Chris E. Forest
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 2679–2686, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-2679-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-2679-2024, 2024
Short summary Executive editor
Steven Sherwood and Chris Forest

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1647', Christopher Smith, 03 Sep 2023
  • RC2: 'Review of Sherwood and Forest', Anonymous Referee #2, 05 Sep 2023
  • AC1: 'Reply to Comment #1 on egusphere-2023-1647', Steven Sherwood, 10 Oct 2023
  • AC2: 'Reply to Comment #2 on egusphere-2023-1647', Steven Sherwood, 10 Oct 2023

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1647', Christopher Smith, 03 Sep 2023
  • RC2: 'Review of Sherwood and Forest', Anonymous Referee #2, 05 Sep 2023
  • AC1: 'Reply to Comment #1 on egusphere-2023-1647', Steven Sherwood, 10 Oct 2023
  • AC2: 'Reply to Comment #2 on egusphere-2023-1647', Steven Sherwood, 10 Oct 2023

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
AR by Steven Sherwood on behalf of the Authors (12 Oct 2023)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (14 Nov 2023) by Peter Haynes
AR by Steven Sherwood on behalf of the Authors (17 Nov 2023)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (23 Nov 2023) by Peter Haynes
ED: Publish as is (18 Dec 2023) by Barbara Ervens (Executive editor)
AR by Steven Sherwood on behalf of the Authors (29 Jan 2024)

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

29 Feb 2024
| Highlight paper
Opinion: Can uncertainty in climate sensitivity be narrowed further?
Steven C. Sherwood and Chris E. Forest
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 2679–2686, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-2679-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-2679-2024, 2024
Short summary Executive editor
Steven Sherwood and Chris Forest
Steven Sherwood and Chris Forest

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Latest update: 29 Feb 2024
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The requested preprint has a corresponding peer-reviewed final revised paper. You are encouraged to refer to the final revised version.

Equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS), with a specific definition, has been used as a convenient measure, encapsulated in a single number, of the response of the climate to increases in long-lived greenhouse gases. The authors recall some of the history of how ECS has been estimated, by models and observations, including paleoclimate data and note recent progress in reducing uncertainty in the value of ECS. However they also note that there are important aspects of future potential climate change that are not captured by the ECS measure and therefore that there will be limited usefulness in too strong a focus on reducing uncertainty in ECS alone.
Short summary
The most fundamental parameter used to gauge the severity of future climate change is the so-called Equilibrium climate sensitivity, which measures the warming that would ultimately occur due to a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Due to recent advances it is now thought to probably lie in the range 2.5–4 C. We discuss this and the issues involved in evaluating and using the number, pointing to some pitfalls in current efforts, but also possibilities for further progress.