Changes in daily air temperatures and precipitation across the Sava River Basin and their correlation with large-scale atmospheric circulations

• Published in: Theoretical and Applied Climatology
• Main Authors: Ogrin, Matej, Ogrin, Darko, Milošević, Dragan, Pantelić, Milana, Dolinaj, Dragan, Trobec, Tajan, Glojek, Kristina, Savić, Stevan
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: Air temperatures; Atmospheric circulations; Climate change; Extreme indices; Precipitation; Southeast Europe; Arctic; North Atlantic; North Atlantic oscillation
• Online Access: https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/changes-in-daily-air-temperatures-and-precipitation-across-the-sa; https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-022-04024-5

In this study, air temperature and precipitation seasonality and their correlation with large-scale atmospheric circulations over the Sava River Basin (SRB), i.e., over the areas of Slovenia, Croatia, and Serbia, are analyzed. We used daily air temperature and precipitation measurements from 12 meteorological stations for the period from 1981 to 2010. In addition, mean (Ta), maximum (Tmax), and minimum (Tmin) daily temperatures and daily precipitation (P) were included in the analysis. Temperature values were correlated with atmospheric circulation patterns (ACPs), i.e., daily indices Arctic Oscillation (AO), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), and Mediterranean Oscillation (MO) for the same study period. The daily air temperature and precipitation data were obtained from European Climate Assessment & Dataset (ECA&D). The results generally show increasing trends in air temperatures, mainly during the spring and summer seasons, but also non-significant trends for precipitation. Moreover, the correlation results show no or weak influence of ACPs on seasonal air temperatures and precipitation, but the dominant effects differ by ACP type as well as at different seasonal levels. Among the selected ACPs, MO proved to be the most significant for the Sava River Basin.