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Laboratory of Numerical Modeling of Planetary Processes

The laboratory is hosted in the Pisa headquarter of the IGG, within the CNR Research Area of ​​Pisa.

The Laboratory

At present, the activities of this numerical laboratory are dedicated to the following research topics:


Planetary fluid dynamics:

Rotating turbulent convection in water and high-Prandtl number fluids as a conceptual basis for simulations in planetary atmospheres and oceans, in ice-covered oceans (Ganymede, Europa), and in the mantles of rocky planets.
Vortex dynamics in planetary atmospheres and oceans, with particular emphasis on atmospheric dynamics in gaseous planets (Jupiter).
Estimates of the habitability of rocky planets using simplified climate models (EBM, ESTM, EMIC).

Simplified numerical simulation of the formation of anticyclonic vortices in a protoplanetary disk. The fluid's vorticity is plotted.
Numerical simulation of the habitability index (0; uninhabitable; 1: liquid water on the entire planet) as a function of the incident stellar radiation (normalized to that of the Earth)
High-resolution numerical simulation (with the Delft3D model) of the intensity of energy transport towards the coast in winter

Geosphere-biosphere-climate interactions in the Earth System ::

  • Dynamics of soil-vegetation-atmosphere interactions in the “Critical Zone” in extreme regions, with particular attention to mountain regions and the Arctic tundra.
  • Modeling the dynamics of mountain lake ecosystems and lake ecosystem-environment-climate interactions.
  • Empirical modeling of the relationships between climate, vegetation, and fires by developing and using data-based models for estimating and forecasting burned area
imulation, with a data-based model driven by climate projections, of the potential increase (in percentage) of the area burned by wildfires, for a global temperature increase of 2 °C compared to pre-industrial values

Instruments

The laboratory bases its activity on the development, implementation, and use of deterministic numerical models, both conceptual and complex, and on the use of community models. Currently, it uses ESTM (Evolution of an EBM) models, box models for soil-vegetation-atmosphere interaction, simplified lake ecosystem models, rotating convection-turbulence simulation models, quasi-geostrophic turbulence models, the JULES model, the EMIC PLASIM model, and the Delft3D coastal model. Data-based, empirical models are also developed and used to estimate and predict the response of specific systems (fires, glaciers, ecosystems) to climate variability.
For simplified numerical simulations, the numerous workstations and multi-processor servers available at the CNR are used, while the more complex simulations are currently performed at CINECA.

Staff and Contacts

Staff:

Dr. Antonello Provenzale (Laboratory Manager)
Dr. Maria Silvia Giamberini
Dr. Marta Magnani


External Collaborators:
Alberto Adriani, INAF, Roma
Carlo Baroni, Università di Pisa
Carl Beierkuhnlein, University of Bayreuth, Germany
Palma Blonda, CNR IIA, Bari
Annalisa Bracco, Georgiatech, USA
Fasma Diele, CNR IAC, Bari
Tomaso Esposti Ongaro, INGV, Pisa
Klaus Fraedrich, Max-Planck-Institute, Hamburg, Germany
Jost von Hardenberg, CNR ISAC, Torino
Luciano Iess, Università La Sapienza, Roma
Arnon Karnieli, Ben Gurion University, Israel
Carmela Marangi, CNR IAC, Bari
Giuseppe Mitri, Università “G. D’Annunzio”, Chieti
Giuseppe Murante, INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste
Elisa Palazzi, CNR ISAC, Torino
Maria Cristina Salvatore, Università di Pisa
Laura Silva, INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste
Edward A Spiegel, Columbia University, New York, USA
Marco Turco, University of Barcelona, Spain
Giovanni Vladilo, INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste
Hezi Yizhaq, BGU, Sede Boker Campus, Israel
Jeffrey B. Weiss, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA

Phones : +39 050 6212372 (Dr. Antonello Provenzale)

E-mail: antonello.provenzale@cnr.it

Methods and Applications

The laboratory bases its activity on the development, implementation, and use of deterministic numerical models, both conceptual and complex.

Currently, the following are used:

  • ESTM models (evolution of an EBM)
  • box models for soil-vegetation-atmosphere interaction
  • simplified models of lake ecosystems
  • the JULES model
  • the EMIC PLASIM model.

Data-based, empirical models are also developed and used to estimate and predict the response of specific systems (fires, glaciers, ecosystems) to climate variability.

Scientific Projects and Interests

  • EU H2020 ECOPOTENTIAL (2015-2019), grant number 641762
  • EU ERA4CS (special project Serv_for_Fire)
  • ASI JUICE phase C/D – Scientific activities
  • PON OT4CLIMA

Publications

  • H. Yizhaq, G. Bel, S. Silvestro, T. Elperin, J. F. Kok, M. Cardinale, A. Provenzale, I. Katra, The origin of the transverse instability of aeolian megaripples. Earth Plan. Sci. Letters, in press.
  • M. Turco, J.J. Rosa-Cánovas, J. Bedia, S. Jerez, J.P. Montávez, M.C. Llasat, A. Provenzale, Exacerbated fires in Mediterranean Europe due to anthropogenic warming projected with nonstationary climate-fire models. Nature Communications, 9:3821 | DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06358-z (2018)
  • M. Turco, S. Jerez, F.J. Doblas-Reyes, A. AghaKouchak, M.C. Llasat, A. Provenzale, Skilful forecasting of global fire activity using seasonal climate predictions. Nature Communications, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05250-0 (2018)
  • M. Turco, J. von Hardenberg, A. AghaKouchak, M.C. Llasat, A. Provenzale, R.M. Trigo, On the key role of droughts in the dynamics of summer fires in Mediterranean Europe. Scientific Reports, 7, 81, DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-00116-9 (2017).
  • S. Terzago, J. von Hardenberg, E. Palazzi, A. Provenzale, Snow water equivalent in the Alps as seen by gridded data sets, CMIP5 and CORDEX climate models. The Cryosphere, 11, 1625-1645 (2017)
  • L. Silva, G. Vladilo, G. Murante, A. Provenzale, Quantitative estimates of the surface habitability of Kepler-452b. MNRAS,  https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stx1396 (2017)
  • M. Turco, J. von Hardenberg, A. AghaKouchak, M.-C. Llasat, A.  Provenzale,  R.M. Trigo, On the key role of droughts in the dynamics of summer fires in Mediterranean Europe. Scientific Reports 7: 81 | DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-00116-9 (2017)
  • L. Silva, G. Vladilo, P.M. Schulte, G. Murante, A. Provenzale. From climate models to planetary habitability: temperature constraints for complex life. International Journal of Astrobiology, doi:10.1017/S1473550416000215 (2016)
  • D. Lacitignola, F. Diele, C. Marangi, A. Provenzale. On the dynamics of a generalized predator-prey system with Z-type control. Mathematical Biosciences, in press (2016)
  • A.B. Pieri, F. Falasca, J. von Hardenberg, A. Provenzale. Plume dynamics in rotating Rayleigh–Bénard convection. Physics Letters A, 380, 1363-1367 (2016)
  • F. Viterbo, J. von Hardenberg, A. Provenzale, L. Molini, A. Parodi, O.O. Sy, S. Tanelli. High-Resolution Simulations of the 2010 Pakistan Flood Event: Sensitivity to Parameterizations and Initialization Time. J. Hydrometeorology, 17, DOI: 10.1175/JHM-D-15-0098.1 (2016)
  • M. Turco, J. Bedia, F. Di Liberto, P. Fiorucci, J. von Hardenberg, N. Koutsias, M.C. Llasat, F. Xystrakis, A. Provenzale. Decreasing Fires in Mediterranean Europe. PLOS ONE 11, e0150663. doi:10.1371/journalpone.0150663 (2016)
  • J. von Hardenberg, D. Goluskin, A. Provenzale, E.A Spiegel. Generation of Large-Scale Winds in Horizontally Anisotropic Convection. Physical Review Letters, 115, 134501 (2015)
  • A. Pieri, J. von Hardenberg, A. Parodi, A. Provenzale. Sensitivity of Precipitation Statistics to Resolution, Microphysics, and Convective Parameterization: A Case Study with the High-Resolution WRF Climate Model over Europe. J. Hydrometeorology, 16, doi: 10.1175/JHM-D-14-0221.1 (2015)
  • A. Provenzale, E. Palazzi, K. Fraedrich, Editors, The Fluid Dynamics of Climate, CISM series (Springer, 2015).