Spotlight on Code for Earth Joint Challenges with Uni Reading and CESOC/Uni Bonn

Welcome again to another spotlight on the Code for Earth's Joint Challenges! Today, we're giving a shoutout to our awesome colleagues at University of Reading and CESOC together with The University of Bonn. As you might know, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts collaborates with the best experts in meteorology and other Earth sciences across the world to advance its research and forecasting operations. This includes successful collaborations with a range of universities across its Member States, such as the amazing partners we have for these Joint Challenges.

If you don't know what Code for Earth is— well, you should, shouldn't you? But just in case, visit our website here, or read any of our previous articles!

Without further ado, let's take a look at these two Joint Challenges!

Challenge #18: Evaluation tool for urban anthropogenic heat emissions: how important is local data? University of Reading

Interested in anthropogenic heat emissions in urban areas? Challenge 18 proposes you to develop a tool for urban heat emissions to tackle the impact of urban energy balance.

This challenge's goal, developed together with our colleagues at the University of Reading, is to build an evaluation tool for anthropogenic heat emission models in urban areas. The tool should be available for any city globally, using different data sources, to compare model outputs of an urban energy balance model (e.g., Simplified Thermal Energy Balance for Buildings Scheme STEBBS, DAVE-transport, Speedy Algorithm for Radiative Transfer through Cloud Sides SPARTACUS-surface/ Surface Urban Energy and Water Balance Scheme SUEWS) with available observational data of surface fluxes, 2-meter air temperature or surface temperature.

Let's take a look at the skills needed to complete this challenge:

• Python or any other programming language suitable for spatial data processing

• Plotting/Visualization of maps and statistical indicators

• Quantitative science skills

• Experience in land-surface or urban-climate modeling is an advantage but not necessary

• Experience handling large spatial datasets (e.g., satellite data products) is an advantage

If you have questions or are unsure how to proceed, take a look at our Github and shoot them at our mentors— they'll be happy to help! Our mentors for this challenge are: Sue Grimmond, Denise Hertwig, Megan McGrory, Ting Sun, Fredrik Lindberg for Uni Reading, Birgit Sützl, Robin Hogan, and Kirsten M Florentine Weber for ECMWF.

Challenge #30: Real-Time Modeling of Hydrological Loading Deformation and Gravity Changes – CESOC/Uni Bonn

The overall goal of this challenge thought together with our partners at CESOC and University of Bonn is to establish a platform for hydrological loading deformation and gravity changes, which geodesists and geophysicists can use to:

1. Correct real-time geodetic time series.

2. Monitor changes in the shape and gravity of the Earth at a continental scale to identify regions of rapid subsidence and uplift during wet and dry seasons, respectively.

Your job is to help to produce a high-resolution model of Earth surface deformation and gravity changes associated with continental water redistribution to allow natural hazard monitoring. For this, you'll need a bunch of specific skills— let's go through them together.

• Background in geodesy, geophysics, mathematics, physics, computer sciences or related fields.

• Experience with Python or C , visualization software (e.g., QGIS, GMT), GRIB and/or netCDF files.

• Basic time series analysis knowledge.

If you're looking for more detailed info about this Challenge, navigate your way to our Github page, or ask questions to our fantastic mentors: for CESOC/Uni Bonn, we have Makan A. Karegar, Anne Springer, Christina Strohmenger, and Bernd Uebbing; for ECMWF, Jasper Denissen.

Remember, the Call for Participation is now open until 9 April 2024! We invite thinkers, creators, and innovators to step forward with their solutions to these challenges. Whether you're a student, professional, or simply someone with a visionary idea, this is your place to shine and potentially see your solution come to life.

Keep coding, y'all!