Enterprise AI Analysis
Destination Earth: The Climate Change Adaptation Digital Twin
This paper introduces the Destination Earth Climate Change Adaptation Digital Twin, a pioneering initiative by the European Union to operationalize multi-decadal, global climate projections at kilometer-scale resolution. It details the framework, built using three coupled Earth system models and advanced supercomputers, for delivering actionable climate information. The twin achieves record-breaking full-machine performance, demonstrating unprecedented throughput and scalability at resolutions up to 1 km across all major Earth system components.
Executive Impact & Key Metrics
The Destination Earth Climate Change Adaptation Digital Twin represents a monumental leap in climate modeling, delivering unparalleled granularity and operational efficiency. This enables better-informed decision-making for climate adaptation strategies and strengthens societal resilience against extreme events.
Deep Analysis & Enterprise Applications
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The Climate DT establishes a robust operational scalable framework for producing kilometer-scale multi-decadal climate projections (up to 2050). This framework addresses limitations of existing approaches by providing frequently updated global actionable climate information at relevant spatial and temporal scales, supporting adaptation planning and societal resilience. It integrates advanced km-scale Earth system models, sector-relevant applications, and observations into unified, end-to-end workflows.
The initiative reports record-setting full-system scalability and throughput of two Earth system models at up to 1 km resolution on EuroHPC supercomputers. This includes multi-decadal simulations at 5 km resolution across all major Earth system components, achieving a production throughput of 0.6 simulated years per day and a climate data portfolio of 6.6 petabytes. Record-breaking full-machine performance of up to 97 simulated days per day at 1 km resolution was achieved on LUMI and MareNostrum5.
A harmonized data portfolio ensures a consistent set of parameters, including instantaneous, vertically integrated, and time-averaged statistical parameters. The output from all models uses the same hierarchical HEALPix grid representation, facilitating user uptake and seamless integration into downstream applications. The output is prepared in-memory during model runs to avoid additional processing steps, and asynchronous I/O is used to decouple model throughput from filesystem performance.
Enterprise Process Flow
Case Study: European Union's DestinE Initiative
Challenge: The European Union faced significant challenges in obtaining high-resolution, multi-decadal global climate projections necessary for effective climate change adaptation strategies. Existing models often had insufficient spatial resolutions (50-100 km) and infrequent updates (multi-year cycles), limiting their ability to represent regional processes and extreme events accurately.
Solution: The DestinE initiative launched the Climate Change Adaptation Digital Twin (Climate DT), leveraging Europe's world-class EuroHPC supercomputers (LUMI and MareNostrum5). This involved integrating three advanced km-scale Earth system models (ICON, IFS-NEMO, IFS-FESOM) and developing unified, end-to-end workflows for routine and on-demand simulations.
Results: The Climate DT successfully produced the first-ever multi-decadal simulations at 5 km resolution across all major Earth system components. It achieved a sustained production throughput of 0.6 simulated years per day and generated a climate data portfolio of 6.6 petabytes. Record-breaking full-machine performance of up to 97 simulated days per day at 1 km resolution was demonstrated, enabling exploration of "what-if" scenarios for adaptation strategies.
Impact: This initiative provides physically consistent, global, and actionable climate information at the spatial and temporal scales required for adaptation, significantly advancing how climate information can be produced and delivered to support societal resilience and policy-relevant decision-making.
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Implementation Roadmap
A phased approach to integrate advanced climate modeling into your enterprise operations, ensuring a smooth transition and maximizing impact.
Phase 1: Readiness Assessment & Strategy Definition
Conduct a comprehensive assessment of current climate data needs, existing infrastructure, and organizational readiness. Define clear strategic objectives for integrating km-scale climate projections, identifying key stakeholders and potential use cases. This includes evaluating data integration points and identifying required computational resources.
Phase 2: Digital Twin Deployment & Data Integration
Deploy the Climate DT framework on EuroHPC or similar high-performance computing (HPC) platforms, ensuring seamless integration of Earth system models and applications. Establish robust data pipelines for ingesting, processing, and harmonizing climate data at scale, adhering to common grid representations like HEALPix. Configure end-to-end workflows for routine and on-demand simulation production.
Phase 3: Application Development & Impact Sector Customization
Develop and integrate sector-specific applications (e.g., renewable energy, water management) to translate raw climate data into actionable insights. Customize the digital twin to explore "what-if" scenarios relevant to your enterprise's adaptation strategies. Implement real-time monitoring, quality control, and evaluation mechanisms to ensure data integrity and model performance.
Phase 4: Operationalization & Continuous Improvement
Fully operationalize the Climate DT for continuous production of high-resolution climate information. Establish mechanisms for regular updates, model improvements, and integration of new scientific knowledge. Develop training programs for users and decision-makers to effectively leverage the digital twin for climate adaptation planning and enhanced societal resilience. Explore AI/ML integration for accelerated analysis.
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