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What happens now?
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Your machine runs calculations in the background.
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It processes data for 3–18 months.
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It automatically sends the final data to the scientists at Oxford.
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The scientists pull together the results from everyone's models.
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See the results on BBC One in January 2007.
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See your climate model working
This page tells you how to see your climate model, how to switch between different views, and what all the colours on your globe mean.
To see your climate model running
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Screensaver mode
Recommended if you've set the climate model as your screensaver
- Right click on your desktop
- Select 'Properties'
- Make sure that the 'screensaver' tab is highlighted
- Click 'preview'
If you're in screensaver mode, you'll have to hold down the 'Ctrl' key to use any of the shortcut keys.
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Visualiser mode
- Go to the start menu in the bottom left of your screen. Select 'Programmes', 'Climate Change Experiment', then 'Climate Change Experiment Manager'
- Make sure that the 'tasks' tab is activated
- Click 'Show Graphics'
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Different views
You can choose to see your climate model in a number of different modes. Each one will tell you something different about your personal climate model.
Shortcut key
(Screensaver
mode)
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Shortcut key
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View
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Description
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Ctrl + T
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T
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Temperature
As you would expect, red colours mean hotter temperatures, and blue colours mean colder temperatures. See how the temperature changes over the course of a day or a year. And of course, watch to see if there is a significant change as the years go by.
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Ctrl + C
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C
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Cloud Cover
Pressing the keys 1-5 while in this mode will let you turn different layers of cloud on and off. (Don't forget to hold 'Ctrl' down if you're in screensaver mode).
Different kinds of clouds affect the climate in different ways. High clouds tend to reflect the Sun's heat back into space - and therefore help cool the planet. Low clouds trap heat, and make it warmer.
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Ctrl + P
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P
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Pressure
Blue equals low pressure, white equals high pressure.
The weather fronts you see on a weather map are usually associated with isolated regions of low pressure.
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Ctrl + R
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R
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Rainfall
See how the pattern of rainfall is different in the tropics to elsewhere. See if you can spot monsoon season.
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Ctrl + O
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O
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Ocean Surface Temperature
the temperature of the oceans affects the temperature of the air above. Our climate model treats this in greater detail than ever before.
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Ctrl + E
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E
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Sulphur
Sulphur is a pollutant that decays fairly rapidly, so you only tend to see it near where it was emitted. See how sulphur emissions change as the years go by.
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What else can you do during the experiment?
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