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JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 113, D14122, doi:10.1029/2007JD009336, 2008

Role of ozone in the solar cycle modulation of the North Atlantic Oscillation

Yuhji Kuroda

Climate Research Department, Meteorological Research Institute, Tsukuba, Japan


Koji Yamazaki

Graduate School of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan


Kiyotaka Shibata

Climate Research Department, Meteorological Research Institute, Tsukuba, Japan


Abstract

The effect of ozone on the 11-year solar cycle modulation of the winter-mean North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is examined through analyses of observed meteorological and ozone data from 1978 to 2000. It is found that a significant ozone anomaly associated with the winter NAO is created in winter in high solar (HS) years only and the anomaly persists from spring to summer, creating a large temperature anomaly in the lower stratosphere through radiative heating. Such a temperature anomaly in the stratosphere creates anomalous temperature of opposite sign at lower heights and anomalous zonal wind in the polar area of the troposphere in summer. The associated surface signal is very similar to the summer Arctic Oscillation (Summer-AO). The mechanism for the formation of the Summer-AO is also discussed.

Received 30 August 2007; accepted 15 February 2008; published 26 July 2008.

Keywords: Solar cycle; ozone; North Atlantic Oscillation.

Index Terms: 1650 Global Change: Solar variability (7537); 1616 Global Change: Climate variability (1635, 3305, 3309, 4215, 4513); 3305 Atmospheric Processes: Climate change and variability (1616, 1635, 3309, 4215, 4513); 0341 Atmospheric Composition and Structure: Middle atmosphere: constituent transport and chemistry (3334); 3362 Atmospheric Processes: Stratosphere/troposphere interactions.

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Citation: Kuroda, Y., K. Yamazaki, and K. Shibata (2008), Role of ozone in the solar cycle modulation of the North Atlantic Oscillation, J. Geophys. Res., 113, D14122, doi:10.1029/2007JD009336.