Atmosphere and Ocean Model Development Teams Align for E3SM Progress

A recent meeting at Sandia National Laboratories brought together developers from the two major components of the Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) being rewritten into C++/Kokkos in order to improve performance on DOE exascale computers: EAMxx and OMEGA. The teams focused on how work done in each component could benefit the other so as to not reinvent the wheel. With a shared desire to chart the course for other E3SM components to move to C++/Kokkos, the teams dove into wide-ranging topics including testing strategies, performance optimization, how users interact with the model, documentation, and shared utilities.

There was a palpable desire to break through component silos. In topical discussions, the teams explored how their efforts could support each other, while realizing that it doesn’t make sense to unify every approach across models given the differing needs in different components. The discussions were highly productive and aimed at finding the best paths forward for the broader project, with no team insisting on having the “right” way. Rather, the emphasis was on cross-pollination and shared progress. The teams intend to keep lines of communication open regularly and have additional in person meetings to continue collaboration.