Model development

IOW has a strong expertise in regional ocean modelling, covering hydrodynamics, turbulence and biogeochemistry. RA3 actively develops the required scientific models and numerical techniques tailored for the interdisciplinary research questions at IOW. For three of these models, IOW takes the lead in development, while they are also used and co-developed at many international partner institutions.

• The coastal ocean model GETM (General Estuarine Transport Model) is a hydrodynamic model targeted at high-resolution simulations of the Baltic Sea and coastal areas worldwide.
• The General Ocean Turbulence Model (GOTM) is a one-dimensional water column model, and its state-of-the-art turbulence closure module is integrated in many ocean models.
• The Ecological Regional Ocean Model (ERGOM) is a medium complexity biogeochemical model applied for a wide range of studies.

A coupling framework for a regional Earth system model (IOW ESM) combines these models. It flexibly allows to run these models stand-alone, or coupled to other component models developed outside IOW.