/ CMIP Phase 7 (CMIP7) / CMIP7 Data Request / Gathering input for the CMIP AR7 Fast Track Data Request

Gathering input for the CMIP AR7 Fast Track Data Request

The Data Request Task Team have launched the first phase of public consultation on the new harmonised data request for the CMIP AR7 Fast Track.

A new Data Request structure

The harmonised component of the AR7 Fast Track data request is being developed through a large community engagement exercise. The structure of the request is changing from previous data requests to make the selection of variables for modelling centres easier to produce consistently. This will lead to a more consistent selection of variables being available to CMIP data users, improving the experience from previous CMIP phases.

To make this change, the Data Request Task Team have devised a process which connects variables and experiments to opportunities. This makes it clear what the objectives of groups of variables are and why they have been requested.

There is some key jargon that is used across this process that it is important to understand before you can contribute to the consultation:

Experiment groups

These are non-exclusive grouping of experiments (e.g. ‘AR7 Fast Track’, ‘DECK’, ‘Scenarios’ etc.). Experiments can belong to more than one group. The list of experiments is currently limited to those in the Fast Track, but there will be chance to propose new experiments for inclusion in the data request during Phase 2 of the consultation (October/November 2024).

Variable groups

These are non-exclusive grouping of CMIP variables (e.g. monthly time slices of the baseline variables). Variables can belong to more than one group.

Opportunities

These are the intended use-case/justification for one or multiple variable groups. Opportunities are linked to relevant experiment groups. Identifying opportunities helps to provide a structure to map variables against requirements. Each opportunity description will convey why this combination of variables and experiments is important and how they contribute to impact. 

How to contribute

During this consultation you can either propose new a) variables b) variable groups c) experiment groups d) opportunities, or comment on existing ones.

To coordinate the process and review proposals five thematic author groups have been formed in five different topic areas:

  1. Atmosphere
  2. Earth system
  3. Impacts and adaptation
  4. Land and land-ice
  5. Ocean and sea-ice

Members of your community on these author teams may engage with you to understand your variable requirements for CMIP7. Alternatively, you are welcome to contribute to this consultation individually.

During the public consultation, the proposal forms can be used to propose:

  1. New Variables: defining a new variable may involve simple adjustments to existing metadata, it may require a lengthy discussion on the CF discussion forum, or complex balancing of priorities. For new variable proposals, the first step is to propose a new physical parameter if it does not already exist before you can submit the new variable proposal form.
  2. New physical parameters: If an existing CF Standard Name does not exist to describe your parameter, you should make a new name proposal to the CF Standard Names discussion list (see guidance on new standard name proposals here and rules for CF standard names here). Please add ‘CMIP7’ at the start of you GitHub issue title. If you are submitting multiple proposals, please group together similar ones to reduce the workload for the CF community. The new standard name proposal process through CF could take up to 2-3 months, depending on the complexity of the proposal. We recommend you propose any required new standard names as soon as possible to give time for any required discussions to take place before the Data Request deadline in October.
  3. New Variable Groups: the variable group includes justification for each set of variables. This can include a MIP set of variables.
  4. New Experiment Groups –propose new groups of experiments -there will be an opportunity to add experiments not in the AR7 Fast Track later during Phase 2, for inclusion in the v1.1 release in December.  During Phase 1 proposers can only link to the AR7 Fast Track experiments, but there is the chance to indicate that additional experiments outside the Fast Track will need to be added to the group.
  5. New Opportunities: Identifying opportunities helps to provide a structure to map variables against requirements. Each opportunity description will convey why this combination of variables and experiments is important and how variables and experiments contribute to impact. Each opportunity is intended to cover a broad area of work spanning multiple MIPs and community activities. Each opportunity includes:
    • A high-level description of the science and/or societal use and impact.
    • A time slice to specify a block of years for which data is needed. As with the priority and ensemble size, this applies to all data in this opportunity (optional).
    • Experiments (maybe tens) and variables (maybe hundreds) that link to the opportunity.  Some experiments and variables will be linked to more than one opportunity.

This consultation will be conducted using an online relational database tool called Airtable. Each database within Airtable is called a Base. For this consultation, the information is spread across three different bases:

View detailed guide on how to contribute

Step-by-step guide

Due to dependencies across the different tables in Airtable, there is a recommended order for you to submit new proposals. You may not need to follow every step of this guide (for example, you may not need to submit a new variable). Where this is the case, just skip that step and move ahead to the next step.

Step 1

Check all three bases so you can answer:

  1. Does the Physical Parameters base contain all the physical parameters I need?
    1. If I need to propose a new physical parameter, is there an existing CF standard name for this, or do I also need to propose a new CF standard name?
  2. Does the Variables base contain all the variables I need?
  3. Does the Opportunities base contain all the experiment groups I need?
  4. Does the Opportunities base contain all the variable groups I need?
  5. Are there any submitted opportunities/variable groups/experiment groups that would suit what I need with some minor changes?

Step 2

Once you can answer all the questions above, you can follow the decision tree below to decide which form(s) you need to fill out and in what order.  If you need to fill out the comment forms, you can read more information about those in the Commenting on existing proposed materials section below.

Remember we are aiming for a consolidated, concise list.  When proposing materials always ask, Is this essential?

  • What data is requested, including CF metadata?
  • Why is it needed and why it is a priority?
  • Who will make use of it?
  • How it will be used?
View detailed guide on how to contribute

When do I need to contribute by?

This is an in-real-time consultation. Community members with input are advised to do so as early as possible.

  • Real-time consultation will remain open until 12th September.
  • Author meetings will take place during the week of 16th September to finalise decisions.
  • Sprint in mid-September – finalise all cross-thematic decisions and possible trigger of further author team prioritisation on decisions if the list is still too long.
  • Within 2 weeks of the end of the sprint – finalise and issue the first version of the Data Request.

CF Conventions drop-in session (August 2024)

The CMIP Data Request Task Team are working with community representative leads across five thematic author teams to produce a set of theme papers which will develop the AR7 Fast Track CMIP Data Request (DR). Within this process, there is the opportunity for new physical parameters and new variables to be proposed. This might require a new CF Standard Name to be agreed. We encourage those expecting to propose any required new standard names to do so as soon as possible to give time for any required discussions to take place before the first version of the Data Request is released in October.

In this community drop-in session, Data Request Task Team member and CF Conventions expert, Alison Pamment, presented an overview of what CF standard names are, how they are used with other CF metadata attributes and the process for proposing a new CF Standard Name.

Access the event webpage →

Quick links

Consultation – viewing information in the Data Request bases:

Consultation – propose new content forms

Consultation – comment on content in the bases – including new content

FAQs

How do I propose a new CF Standard Name and how long does this take?

If an existing CF Standard Name does not exist to describe your parameter, you should make a new name proposal to the CF Standard Names discussion list (see guidance on new standard name proposals here and rules for CF standard names here). Please add ‘CMIP7’ at the start of you GitHub issue title. If you are submitting multiple proposals, please group together similar ones to reduce the workload for the CF community. The new standard name proposal process through CF could take up to 2-3 months, depending on the complexity of the proposal. We recommend you propose any required new standard names as soon as possible to give time for any required discussions to take place before the Data Request deadline in October.

Will variables from previous CMIP phases automatically be included in the new data request?

No. There are no assumed variables carried over from CMIP6. If you need a variable for your opportunity, make sure it is included.

What is the different between a variable and physical parameter?

Each Physical Parameter record defines a parameter name, associated with a CF Standard Name. The physical parameters were previously called ‘MIP Variables’ in CMIP6. The name has changed to ‘Physical Parameters’ to try and reduce confusion between them and Variables. In CMIP6, the physical parameters were collated in MIP Tables, which were used to organise the variables.

Defining a Variable starts with choosing the relevant physical parameter, then adding additional information/metadata to define more of its attributes. 

For example, tas (Near-Surface Air Temperature) is the physical parameter, Amon.tas is the Variable (monthly-mean tas). 

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