Relationship between QBOs of stratospheric winds, ENSO variability and other atmospheric parameters

Abstract

The 50-mbar tropical zonal wind has a predominent quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) mode of an average period of ca. 28 months, with variation in the range 21-33 months and amplitudes varying within +20 per cent. For the Southern Oscillation, Tahiti minus Darwin (T-D), sea-surface temperature (SST) and equatorial rainfall indices, QBO is not the strongest mode. Periods of 3.6 and ca. 6 years are stronger. The QBO modes for these and other parameters (e.g. surface winds and winds in upper and lower troposphere and stratospheric winter temperature at the North Pole) are very irregular, with amplitudes, phases, and sometimes even period having large changes with time. It seems that these have little relationship with the 50-mbar zonal wind QBO and may have altogether different origins.

Revisiting the Possible Links between the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation and the Indian Summer Monsoon Using NCEP R-2 and CMAP Fields

“…More specifically, the presence of a biennial signal in the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) rainfall has been reported by numerous workers (e.g. Mooley and Parthasarathy, 1984;Kane, 1992Kane, , 1995Terray, 1995).…”

“…Mooley and Parthasarathy, 1984;Tian and Yasunari, 1992;Shen and Lau, 1995;Kane, 1992Kane, , 1995Terray, 1995;Meehl, 1987Meehl, , 1993Meehl, , 1997Barnett, 1991;Rasmusson et al, 1990;Ropelewski et al, 1992; among many others). More specifically, the presence of a biennial signal in the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) rainfall has been reported by numerous workers (e.g.…”

The stratospheric quasi‐biennial oscillation in the NCEP reanalyses: Climatological structures

“…Some of these are faint at best and are not generally accepted [Kane, 1992;Xu, 1992]. The present study was initiated to explore the possibility that the QBO affects tropical convection by modulating the cloud top environment [Collimore et al, 1998].…”

Common signals between physical and atmospheric variables and zooplankton biomass in the Subarctic Pacific

“…A similar signal (25-30 months) has also been detected in the troposphere, sea level pressure, air and SSTs (Landsberg et al, 1963;Trenberth, 1975;Currie and Hameed, 1988;Labitzke and van Loon, 1992). This has been proposed as the explanation for the alternation of weak and strong El Niñ os (Rasmusson et al, 1990;Kane, 1992;Angell, 1992;Gray et al, 1992). A detailed analysis of the specific QBO signal in the temperature and zooplankton time series at station P, its phase relationship, and its possible meaning was made in a previous study (Conversi and Hameed, 1997), and indicates that a climatic signal is possibly present in the oceanic biota.…”