Trim or restructure the JULES and Ocean and Sea Ice pages to make the main learning points clearer

[ickc]

The Land Surface and JULES and Ocean and Sea Ice pages were
added from training slides (#269, #270). They contain a lot of useful
information, but for an introductory module in an atmosphere course it is
hard to pick out the main learning points.

This came up in a review of the material from a pedagogical perspective. The
suggestion is to trim or restructure both pages so that the essential content
comes first and is clearly separated from optional detail.

#342 is an open correction to the ocean coupling text. Any restructuring
should include that fix, or the fix should be merged first. This issue also
relates to the point in #134 about subsystem detail appearing before the
overall picture is clear.

What learners need from these pages

The Module 1 aims and objectives
(source)
ask learners to:

• explain why land-atmosphere coupling matters and describe the role of JULES
  in LFRic Atmosphere configurations;
• describe the role of the ocean and sea-ice components in coupled Momentum
  configurations.

Content that goes beyond these aims could be treated as optional. None of the
six questions in the Module 1 quiz currently covers JULES, the ocean or sea
ice.

Observations

Land Surface and JULES

(source)

• The main message, that JULES is an active model component rather than a
  static boundary dataset, does not appear until near the end of the page
  (L64).
• There are three long enumerations one after another:
  • the driving inputs, given as a 14-item list in a sentence (L17-20);
  • the processes JULES simulates (L22-30);
  • the nine surface tiles (L32-42).
• L55-60 largely repeat what is said in L32-42.
• "Atmospheric forcing" (L10) and "forcing data" (L13) are not defined.
• The page does not help learners place JULES in the wider system. It does not
  say who develops JULES. It also does not say that JULES runs inside the
  LFRic Atmosphere executable, whereas NEMO and TRIP run as separate
  executables coupled through OASIS3-MCT. The
  Rivers page
  explains this, but it comes after the JULES and ocean pages.

Ocean and Sea Ice

(source)

• The page has eight sections, and the main message (L82-86) is in the middle.
• NEMO and SI3 each have a description, a list of inputs and a list of
  processes. That is a lot of detail for an introduction.
• The "Useful detail to recognise" section opens with "Learners do not need
  the full numerical detail at this stage". This reads a little oddly when
  addressed to the learner. The structure of the page could show what is
  optional instead.
• "1 deg, 1/4 deg, and 1/12 deg horizontal resolution" does not say what the
  degrees refer to. These values also sit next to the AMM7 and AMM15
  resolutions, which are given in km.
• The marine configurations (GOSI9, AMM7 and AMM15) are likely to be optional
  detail for atmosphere users.
• The ORCA figure is covered in the figures issue (Introduce and explain figures so learners know what to take away from them #354).

Suggested approach

Use the same structure for both pages, and for the Rivers page for
consistency:

1. Key points. A short box at the top with three or four points that match
   the module aims.
2. Core content.
   • What the component is and who develops it.
   • Why it matters for the atmosphere.
   • What it exchanges with LFRic Atmosphere, shown as a two-column table
     (what the atmosphere sends to the component, and what the component
     sends back) or as a small diagram.
   • How it is coupled: inside the same executable, or through OASIS3-MCT.
3. Optional detail. Placed in collapsible dropdowns (sphinx_design is
   already enabled) or in a separate section. This would include:
   • the full lists of processes, surface tiles and ice categories;
   • the marine configurations, in a table with consistent units;
   • ocean grids and parameterisations.
4. Further reading. At the end of the page, following the landing pages
   issue (Landing pages: move additional links to a further reading section at the end of each page #355).

This approach keeps the existing content while making it clear what is
essential.

For example, the key points for JULES could be:

• JULES is the land surface model used with LFRic Atmosphere, and it runs
  inside the atmosphere executable.
• The atmosphere provides JULES with near-surface conditions such as
  radiation, precipitation, wind, temperature and humidity. JULES returns
  fluxes of heat, moisture and momentum.
• Each grid box is divided into surface types (tiles). Fluxes are calculated
  for each tile and then averaged over the grid box.
• The land surface is an active component: its initial state and
  configuration choices affect how the atmosphere behaves.

Questions for the Met Office team

1. Are you happy for optional detail to go into collapsible dropdowns, or
   would you prefer it on a separate page?
2. Should the Land, Ocean and Sea Ice, and Rivers pages share one coupling
   overview diagram near the start of Module 1?
3. Should we add quiz questions for these pages once the key points are
   agreed?