The joint impacts of Atlantic and Pacific multidecadal variability on South American precipitation and temperature

Abstract

AbstractSouth American climate is influenced by both Atlantic multidecadal variability (AMV) and Pacific multidecadal variability (PMV). But how they jointly affect South American precipitation and surface air temperature is not well understood. Here we analyze composite anomalies to quantify their combined impacts using observations and reanalysis data. During an AMV warm (cold) phase, PMV-induced JJA precipitation anomalies are more positive (negative) over 0°-10°S and southeastern South America, but more negative (positive) over the northern Amazon and central Brazil. PMV-induced precipitation anomalies in DJF are more positive (negative) over Northeast Brazil and southeastern South America during the warm (cold) AMV phase, but more negative (positive) over the central Amazon Basin and central-eastern Brazil. PMV’s impact on AMV-induced precipitation anomalies shows similar dipole patterns. The precipitation changes result from perturbations of the local Hadley and Walker Circulations. In JJA, PMV- and AMV-induced temperature anomalies are more positive (negative) over entire South America when the other basin is in a warm (cold) phase, but in DJF temperature anomalies are more positive (negative) only over the central Andes and central-eastern Brazil and more negative (positive) over southeastern South America and Patagonia. Over central Brazil in JJA and southern Bolivia and northern Argentina in DJF, the temperature and precipitation anomalies are negatively correlated. Our results show that the influence of Pacific and Atlantic multidecadal variability need to be considered jointly, as significant departures from the mean AMV or PMV fingerprint can occur during a cold or warm phase of the other basin’s mode.