Graziano Giuliani, Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP)

24/06/2026 ore 11:00

CNR-ISAC, Bologna – meeting room online

Abstract

Regional climate models have been used since the end of the 1980s as convenient tools to enhance both in terms of the resolution and physical description the output from Global Climate Models. In the present day, the output resolution of GCMs is pushing the “high resolution” towards the kilometer scale, and the cost of such simulations has ballooned, possibly altogether pushing the model physics out of its safe comfort zone. At the same time, from the realm of AI, emulators are now able to reproduce complex nonlinear transform functions and can learn how to replicate, at a fraction of the cost and with a flourishing magical trick, the inference from GCM to whatever resolution they are trained to act toward. We will today have a look together at how the ICTP RegCM, now empowered by MOLOCH and rocking hard on GPU hardware, it is trying to keep open for business an important place in the model’s phase space and extend its coupling capabilities to still satisfy the scientific requirements of the near future.

Bio

MSc in Physics from the University of Roma La Sapienza in the late XX century on LiDAR remote sensing, wannabe ocean modeler, I was caught in an atmospheric whirlwind and due to life’s necessity indentured as a scientific programmer. I regained citizenship in research arena at the University of L’Aquila and later at CNR-Ibimet weather forecast LaMMA in Firenze. I have been a fixed term researcher again at the University of L’Aquila, this time working on inversion algorithms for data assimilation into NWP models. Shaken by a quake, I raised my head to look farther into the future as a climate model developer to hopefully settle the debate on whether a scientist can write reasonably performing computer code. Member of Society of Research Software Engineering. Most of my actual scientific production is linked to the ICTP Regional Climate Model, in which code I have the liberty to introduce new features and correct the collateral bugs. My door is still always open to new adventures..

Remote Connection