Global Climate Observing System

The Global Climate Observing System (GCOS ) is a worldwide institution for climate monitoring.

The system is supported by the World Meteorological Organization ( WMO), the International Oceanographic Commission (IOC ) of UNESCO, the United Nations Environment Programme ( UNEP) and the International Council for Science ( ICSU ).

GCOS is designed as a long -term, user- oriented and operational system that allows the collection of comprehensive climate observations. Applications of the observations provided the climate monitoring (English climate monitoring), the detection of natural and man-made climate change and the classification of its causes ( engl. climate change detection and attribution ), the assessment of damage caused by climate change and variability ( engl. assessment of climate change and climate variability) and research in the areas of understanding, modeling and prediction of the climate system.

Covered the entire climate system with its physical, chemical and biological properties and processes occurring in it atmospheric, oceanic, hydrologic, kryosphärischen and terrestrial processes.