Open AccessTrends in surface equivalent potential temperature: A more comprehensive metric for global warming and weather extremes
Author(s) -
Fengfei Song,
Guang J. Zhang,
V. Ramanathan,
L. Ruby Leung
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.2117832119
Subject(s) - climatology , global warming , atmospheric sciences , environmental science , northern hemisphere , greenhouse gas , middle latitudes , southern hemisphere , precipitation , climate change , meteorology , geography , physics , geology , oceanography
Significance The Earth has warmed by 1.2± 0.1 °C since the preindustrial era. The most common metric to measure the ongoing global warming is surface air temperature since it has long and reliable observational records. However, surface air temperature alone does not fully describe the nature of global warming and its impact on climate and weather extremes. Here we show that surface equivalent potential temperature, which combines the surface air temperature and humidity, is a more comprehensive metric not only for the global warming but also for its impact on climate and weather extremes including tropical deep convection and extreme heat waves. We recommend that it should be used more widely in future climate change studies.