The Copernicus Climate Change Service: Climate Science in Action
Carlo Buontempo, Samantha Burgess, Dick Dee, B. Pinty, Jean‐Noël Thépaut, Michel Rixen, Samuel Almond, David Armstrong, Anca Brookshaw, Angel Lopez Alos, Bill Bell, Cédric Bergeron, Chiara Cagnazzo, Edward Comyn‐Platt, Eduardo Damasio-Da-Costa, Anabelle Guillory, Hans Hersbach, Ándrás Horányi, Julien P. Nicolas, André Obregón, Eduardo Penabad Ramos, Baudouin Raoult, Joaquín Muñoz‐Sabater, A. J. Simmons, Cornel Soci, Martin Suttie, Freja Vamborg, James Varndell, Stijn Vermoote, Xiaobo Yang, Juan Garcés de Marcilla
Abstract
Abstract The Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) provides open and free access to state-of-the-art climate data and tools for use by governments, public authorities, and private entities around the world. It is fully funded by the European Union and implemented by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) together with public and private entities in Europe and elsewhere. With over 120,000 registered users worldwide, C3S has rapidly become an authoritative climate service in Europe and beyond, delivering quality-assured climate data and information based on the latest science. Established in 2014, C3S became fully operational in 2018 with the launch of its Climate Data Store, a powerful cloud-based infrastructure providing access to a vast range of global and regional information, including climate data records derived from observations, the latest ECMWF reanalyses, seasonal forecast data from multiple providers, and a large collection of climate projections. The system has been designed to be accessible to nonspecialists, offering a uniform interface to all data and documentation as well as a Python-based toolbox that can be used to process and use the data online. C3S publishes European State of the Climate reports annually for policy-makers, as well as monthly and annual summaries that are widely disseminated in the international press. Together with users, C3S develops customized indicators of climate impacts in economic sectors such as energy, water management, agriculture, insurance, health, and urban planning. C3S works closely with national climate service providers, satellite agencies, and other stakeholders on the improvement of its data and services.