Model Boundary Conditions

Surface boundary conditions for climate simulation usually consist of, at a minimum, continental configurations, global elevations (i.e. topography and bathymetry), and a vegetation distribution. It has been common for each individual researcher or research group to develop a unique set of boundary conditions for use in their simulations. Thus, unlike simulations of modern climate where there is some degree of comparison possible between simulations completed by multiple research groups, integration of studies across the broader paleoclimate community is hindered, as basic assumptions vary from researcher to researcher. Unless special changes to surface conditions are warranted, this is not the most efficient way to proceed in paleoclimate investigations. This page presents post-publication surface boundary conditions (land-sea distribution, paleotopography, paleobathymetry, and paleovegetation distribution) for various past time periods. These boundary conditions are in NetCDF format and are appropriate for incorporation into numerical studies of Earth's climate.
Early Paleogene (~45 - 65 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Sewall JO, Sloan LC, Huber M, Wing S, 2000, Climate sensitivity to changes in land surface characteristics. Global and Planetary Change 26 (4): 445-465.

Huber M and Sloan LC, 2001, Heat transport, deep waters, and thermal gradients: Coupled simulation of an Eocene Greenhouse Climate. Geophysical Research Letters 28 (18): 3481-3484.

Additional information on the creation of the bathymetry can be found in Dr. Matthew Huber's Dissertation which is located here.


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography Global Vegetation Distribution
Early Maastrichtian (~70 Ma +/- 5 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Sewall, JO, van de Wal, RSW, van der Zwan, K, van Oosterhout, C, Dijkstra, HA, and Scotese, CR, 2007, Climate model boundary conditions for four Cretaceous time slices, Climate of the Past, v.3, p. 647 - 657.


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography
Global Vegetation Distribution
Campanian (~80 Ma +/- 5 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Fricke, HC, Foreman, BZ, and Sewall, JO, 2009, Integrated climate model-oxygen isotope evidence for a North America monsoon during the Late Cretaceous, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, in press, doi:10.1016/j.epsl/2009.10.018


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography
Global Vegetation Distribution
Cenomanian/Turonian Boundary (~90 Ma +/- 5 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Sewall, JO, van de Wal, RSW, van der Zwan, K, van Oosterhout, C, Dijkstra, HA, and Scotese, CR, 2007, Climate model boundary conditions for four Cretaceous time slices, Climate of the Past, v.3, p. 647 - 657.


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography
Global Vegetation Distribution
Early Albian (~110 Ma +/- 5 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Sewall, JO, van de Wal, RSW, van der Zwan, K, van Oosterhout, C, Dijkstra, HA, and Scotese, CR, 2007, Climate model boundary conditions for four Cretaceous time slices, Climate of the Past, v.3, p. 647 - 657.


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography
Global Vegetation Distribution
Early Aptian (~120 Ma +/- 5 Ma) Boundary Conditions

Sewall, JO, van de Wal, RSW, van der Zwan, K, van Oosterhout, C, Dijkstra, HA, and Scotese, CR, 2007, Climate model boundary conditions for four Cretaceous time slices, Climate of the Past, v.3, p. 647 - 657.


Land/Sea Distribution, Bathymetry, and Topography
Global Vegetation Distribution