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WP1: What is the comprehensive climate impact of specific carbon dioxide removal options?

We will extend previous work on forcing footprints of human activities to estimate climate forcing footprints of terrestrial Carbon Dioxid Removal (CDR) options as currently represented in policy-informing Integrated Assessment Models.

In collaboration with the  and  project, we will then include marine CDR options in the analysis.

This project constitutes a novel compilation of information, that is currently emerging from the continued efforts in CDR research. But it goes beyond that: Here we will provide the fundamental knowledge that is needed to improve the representation of CDR measures in policy-informing scenario analysis.

WP2: Which are the most relevant processes in the Earth system to determine its response to a cessation of CO₂ emissions?

In this WP, we will use the data from the Zero Emissions Commitment Model inter-comparison project (). For ZECMIP modelling groups were asked to perform simulations in which CO₂ emissions are stopped. The application of the Systematic Correlation Matrix Evaluation tool (), that I developed during my PhD to the ensemble of ZECMIP, will enable us to provide process level insights into global mean and regionally resolved patterns of multi-model variability.

Accordingly, we can identify the key Earth system processes that drive uncertainty in zero CO₂ emissions scenarios.

WP3: How does the Earth system react to all-forcing net-zero CO₂ scenarios?

Contributions of human activities on how we reach net-zero CO₂ emissions can vary quite strongly.

In this WP, we will use the newly released University of Victoria Earth system climate model () including the atmospheric chemistry module, which allows us to directly force the model with multi-gas emissions data from a variety of net-zero CO2 scenarios from . 

This study will be the first to use an Earth system model of intermediate complexity to study the temperature response to all-forcing net-zero-2050 scenarios. It will provide crucial information about both, the carbon cycle and climate dynamics, of such scenarios. Processes that are only represented in an idealised way in reduced complexity climate models. This study hence builds an important bridge between the Earth system modelling and the integrated assessment model communities.