cc: t.osborn@uea.ac.uk, k.briffa@uea.ac.uk
date: Sat, 25 Aug 2001 21:36:20 +0100 (BST)
from: Simon Tett <simon.tett@metoffice.com>
subject: Paleo-Paper
to: matcollins@met.rdg.ac.uk



Mat,
	The papers looks very good. Hope these comments aren't too late.... I
	don't think I need to see it again.

Simon


Response to reviewers

I couldn't read your letter -- PS files as attachments seem to get
munged by our firewall/email scanner so I've just looked at the paper
to see if I think you've dealt with the reviewers comments.


Editors comments:

3) Don't think you have dealt with the enhanced multi-decadal
   variability in the paper.

Reviewer B.

1) Didn't see a justification for use of tree-rings and not using ice
cores -- the obvious one is that ice cores are no good -- see Jones et
al, 1998.

2) No justification for regional reconstructions rather than what Mann
   et al did (I don't think we can say we didn't do Mann et al because
   we think it is crap!)

3) No justification in the paper for the 9 regions. I think there is
   justification in the JGR Briffa paper.

4) That is a good point -- I would strongly suspect that the control has
   a lot less variance than the observations over the last century --
   not the ALL run though!

5) No response to this in the paper. I suspect we are doing better
   stats than all the rest though!

Specific Questions/comments

1) That is a good point: How about (though a bit germanic)
"Comparison of simulated northern hemisphere variability with
paleo-temperature ..."

Didn't see that you had dealt with points 5 and 6.

Ditto for point 11.

Figures.

2-4 seem to be much as submitted!

Figs 5-8 -- do you want to use colour? It would cost!

Ref C.

Don't seem to have dealt with point a) and it is quite an important
point as well!

Point b is a reasonable point which I think you go some way to dealing
with. I suggest you stress on page 20 the "exploratory" nature of our
analysis. I am just about to start such a run once I have sorted out
the orbital forcings and how to calculate their radiative forcings.

Point c -- not sure what the referee is saying here!

Comments on the MS.

Page 9 "pith" means
     Same sentence I think you need to add that they are grouped by
     species as well (the rest of the para implies that is what is
     done).

Last sentence of penultimate para: stress that decadal to century
scale variability is what we are interested mainly because of its
importance in deciding if recent climate change is anthropogenic or
natural.

First full para on page 13 -- didn't really follow this para.

2nd para, line 11 consider "in comparison" -> "when compared" 

Page 14, first para -- consider expanding the abbreviations i.e CAS ->
CAS (Central Asia).

Page 20, last para. insert 'in the four simulations' after 'six
"negative spikes"'.

Section 10 should be Appendix A.










-- 
Dr Simon Tett  Managing Scientist, Data development and applications.
Met Office   Hadley Centre  Climate Prediction and Research
London Road   Bracknell    Berkshire   RG12 2SY   United Kingdom 
Tel: +44 (0)1344 856886   Fax: +44 (0)1344 854898 
E-mail: simon.tett@metoffice.com   http://www.metoffice.com

