Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States
Changes in climate during the 20th century differ from region to region across the United States. We provide strong evidence that spatial variations in US temperature trends are linked to the hydrologic cycle, and we also present unique information on the seasonal and latitudinal structure of the li...
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ftpubmed:oai:pubmedcentral.nih.gov:2678613 2023-05-15T17:34:47+02:00 Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States Portmann, Robert W. Solomon, Susan Hegerl, Gabriele C. 2009-05-05 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2678613 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19380730 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 en eng National Academy of Sciences http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2678613 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19380730 http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 Physical Sciences Text 2009 ftpubmed https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 2013-09-02T12:51:29Z Changes in climate during the 20th century differ from region to region across the United States. We provide strong evidence that spatial variations in US temperature trends are linked to the hydrologic cycle, and we also present unique information on the seasonal and latitudinal structure of the linkage. We show that there is a statistically significant inverse relationship between trends in daily temperature and average daily precipitation across regions. This linkage is most pronounced in the southern United States (30–40°N) during the May-June time period and, to a lesser extent, in the northern United States (40–50°N) during the July-August time period. It is strongest in trends in maximum temperatures (Tmax) and 90th percentile exceedance trends (90PET), and less pronounced in the Tmax 10PET and the corresponding Tmin statistics, and it is robust to changes in analysis period. Although previous studies suggest that areas of increased precipitation may have reduced trends in temperature compared with drier regions, a change in sign from positive to negative trends suggests some additional cause. We show that trends in precipitation may account for some, but not likely all, of the cause point to evidence that shows that dynamical patterns (El Niño/Southern Oscillation, North Atlantic Oscillation, etc.) cannot account for the observed effects during May-June. We speculate that changing aerosols, perhaps related to vegetation changes, and increased strength of the aerosol direct and indirect effect may play a role in the observed linkages between these indices of temperature change and the hydrologic cycle. Text North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation PubMed Central (PMC) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 106 18 7324 7329 |
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Physical Sciences Portmann, Robert W. Solomon, Susan Hegerl, Gabriele C. Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
topic_facet |
Physical Sciences |
description |
Changes in climate during the 20th century differ from region to region across the United States. We provide strong evidence that spatial variations in US temperature trends are linked to the hydrologic cycle, and we also present unique information on the seasonal and latitudinal structure of the linkage. We show that there is a statistically significant inverse relationship between trends in daily temperature and average daily precipitation across regions. This linkage is most pronounced in the southern United States (30–40°N) during the May-June time period and, to a lesser extent, in the northern United States (40–50°N) during the July-August time period. It is strongest in trends in maximum temperatures (Tmax) and 90th percentile exceedance trends (90PET), and less pronounced in the Tmax 10PET and the corresponding Tmin statistics, and it is robust to changes in analysis period. Although previous studies suggest that areas of increased precipitation may have reduced trends in temperature compared with drier regions, a change in sign from positive to negative trends suggests some additional cause. We show that trends in precipitation may account for some, but not likely all, of the cause point to evidence that shows that dynamical patterns (El Niño/Southern Oscillation, North Atlantic Oscillation, etc.) cannot account for the observed effects during May-June. We speculate that changing aerosols, perhaps related to vegetation changes, and increased strength of the aerosol direct and indirect effect may play a role in the observed linkages between these indices of temperature change and the hydrologic cycle. |
format |
Text |
author |
Portmann, Robert W. Solomon, Susan Hegerl, Gabriele C. |
author_facet |
Portmann, Robert W. Solomon, Susan Hegerl, Gabriele C. |
author_sort |
Portmann, Robert W. |
title |
Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
title_short |
Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
title_full |
Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
title_fullStr |
Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
title_full_unstemmed |
Spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the United States |
title_sort |
spatial and seasonal patterns in climate change, temperatures, and precipitation across the united states |
publisher |
National Academy of Sciences |
publishDate |
2009 |
url |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2678613 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19380730 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 |
genre |
North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation |
op_relation |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2678613 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19380730 http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0808533106 |
container_title |
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |
container_volume |
106 |
container_issue |
18 |
container_start_page |
7324 |
op_container_end_page |
7329 |
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1766133738447568896 |