A comparison of the updated very high resolution model RegCM3_10km with the previous version RegCM3_25km over the complex terrain of Greece: present and future projections

The ability of a fine resolution regional climate model (10 x 10 km) in simulating efficiently the climate characteristics (temperature, precipitation, and wind) over Greece, in comparison to the previous version of the model with a 25 x 25 km resolution, is examined and analyzed in the present study. Overall, the results showed that the finer resolution model presented a better skill in generating low winter temperatures at high altitudinal areas, the temperature difference between the islands and the surrounding sea, high rainfall totals over the mountainous areas, the thermal storms during summer, and the wind maxima over the Aegean Sea. Regarding the future projections, even though the two models agree on the climatic signal, differences are found mainly to the magnitude of change of the selected parameters. Finally, it was found that at higher pressure levels, the present day projections of the two models do not show significant differences since the topography and terrain does not play such an important role as the general atmospheric circulation.