Spin Up & Baseline

[spɪn ʌp] [ˈbeɪs.laɪn] 

Related terms: Composition, Models, Past Futures, Stratigraphy, Time-Horizon, Terrestrial Time, Uncertainty

To »spin up« a climate model is to compare its predictions with the known past of Earth’s climates. The material traces found in ice cores, sediments, and geological formations contain atmospheric elements dating back many hundreds of thousands of years. This data forms the foundation and baseline for climate models. By reconstructing these climatic deep times, we can establish relationships between the composition of the atmosphere and its temperatures. 

       Before a model can plot likely scenarios of our quickly changing atmosphere, it passes through a process of spinning up. This procedure compares the modeled results of past millennia with the knowledge of glaciers and rocks. A model passes spin up when it correctly reproduces hard evidence. In this form, ice and rock predict our fate through computational models.