The transient response of global-mean precipitation to increasing carbon dioxidelevels

Abstract

The transient response of global-mean precipitation to an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide levelsof 1% yr − 1 is investigated in 13 fully coupled atmosphere–ocean general circulation models(AOGCMs) and compared to a period of stabilization. During the periodof stabilization, when carbon dioxide levels are held constant at twice theirunperturbed level and the climate left to warm, precipitation increases at a rate of ∼ 2.4% per unit of global-mean surface-air-temperature change in the AOGCMs. However, whencarbon dioxide levels are increasing, precipitation increases at a smaller rate of ∼ 1.5% per unit of global-mean surface-air-temperature change. This difference can be understoodby decomposing the precipitation response into an increase from the response to the globalsurface-temperature increase (and the climate feedbacks it induces), and a fast atmosphericresponse to the carbon dioxide radiative forcing that acts to decrease precipitation.According to the multi-model mean, stabilizing atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide wouldlead to a greater rate of precipitation change per unit of global surface-temperature change.