Simulation of the rain belt of the West African Monsoon (WAM) in high resolution CCLM Simulation

We present the results of our regional climate modeling experiments conducted on ForHLR1, using the consortium for small-scale modeling (COSMO) regional climate model CCLM over West Africa. This work is embedded in the context of theWest African Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) research project. We conduct nested runs at 50 and 12 km resolution driven by ERA-Interim data to assess the modeled location and intensity of the tropical rainbelt over West Africa for the period 1979–2013. The simulation period includes the years 1983 and 1999 with observed extreme anomalies (dry as well as wet). These anomalies are captured by our experiment:The model reproduces the observed zonal-mean variations in precipitation within the range of comparable regional climate model (RCM) studies, but reduces the dry bias in the Golf of Guinea and shows an increased accuracy for the driest years in general. Based on these encouraging results, we are currently extending our work towards historical climate runs and climate projections for an improved understanding of the different processes involved in the West Africa climate system and their role in generating extreme climatic conditions.