Researchers use AI to generate 15,000 simulated climate years in six hours

Researchers report generating more than 15,000 simulated years of New Zealand climate in six hours using four specialized computer chips, after about a day of AI training. They say conventional regional models would have taken years, enabling a broader examination of rare rainfall extremes. The model learned from 140 years of regional climate simulations and generated reruns of history and possible futures to 2100, drawn from 20 global climate models. Its grid cells are about 12 kilometers wide. The study found that warming increased both extreme rainfall and variation across possible futures. Training included historical and warmer conditions to address unreliable AI outputs under unfamiliar conditions; the simulations cannot predict exactly where or when the next record downpour will occur.