Open AccessEvidence for the influence of the North Atlantic Oscillation on the total ozone column at northern low latitudes and midlatitudes during winter and summer seasons
Author(s) -
Ossó Albert,
Sola Yolanda,
Bech Joan,
Lorente Jerónimo
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.67
H-Index - 298
eISSN - 2156-2202
pISSN - 0148-0227
DOI - 10.1029/2011jd016539
Subject(s) - north atlantic oscillation , geopotential height , northern hemisphere , climatology , middle latitudes , anomaly (physics) , total ozone mapping spectrometer , teleconnection , atmospheric sciences , equator , geopotential , latitude , environmental science , stratosphere , peninsula , tropopause , southern hemisphere , geology , precipitation , ozone layer , geography , el niño southern oscillation , meteorology , physics , geodesy , condensed matter physics , archaeology
The strong influence of the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) on the total ozone column (TOC) in the Northern Hemisphere has been reported in a number of previous studies. In this study we show that this influence is not restricted to the winter season but is also significant in summer. Especially interesting effects of the summer NAO (SNAO) on the TOC are observed over the eastern Mediterranean region, where a strongly positive SNAO index is related to the creation of a geopotential height‐negative anomaly over Greece with maximum amplitude at 200 hPa. Another anomaly was observed west of the Iberian Peninsula with similar effects on the TOC. Analyzing 26 years of Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) data from the equator to midlatitudes (60°) in the Northern Hemisphere, we demonstrate that the SNAO accounts for up to 30% of the TOC variability with a strong latitudinal and longitudinal dependence. Additionally, we obtain significant correlations between the NAO index and the thermal tropopause pressure and also with the geopotential heights at 200 and 500 hPa. Finally, some indirect connections between NAO and the TOC through teleconnections are also discussed.