The atmosphere is a complex system involving physical, chemical, and biogeochemical processes spanning a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Accurate representations of the interactions between processes and/or scales are important for high-quality predictions made by numerical models. Ongoing increases in model resolution and complexity present both new opportunities for more accurate results and new challenges in efficient use of computing resources.

This session discusses process coupling in weather and climate models, with an emphasis on addressing computational and numerical concerns. Relevant topics include, e.g., (1) identification of crucial interactions in numerical simulations, (2) computational methods for coupling different processes and/or scales, (3) problems to be solved in current and emerging models, (4) idealized models and test cases to facilitate the development of complex models, and (5) model reduction studies that produce alternative model formulations or novel computational methods to improve solution accuracy and efficiency.