Mid-latitude Bands Research Articles

Sea level variations in shelf waters off the coast of British Columbia: from sub-synoptic to interannual time scales

Abstract Sea level variations beyond monthly time scales in the northeast Pacific are analyzed using simulation results of a high-resolution regional model, tide gauge and altimeter observations, and surface winds. Along a zonal section extending westward from the Tofino tide gauge on Vancouver Island, sea level variations are mostly accounted for by steric height. On the shelf, the sea level variations are dominated by salinity in the lower half of the water column, with the seasonal maxima occurring in winter caused by the wind-driven downwelling. In the deep ocean the variations are dominated by temperature in the upper layer up to 50–60 m depth, with a maximum in the summer. In between, the sea levels show a minimum seasonal amplitude over the continental slope because this is the inflection point between the out-of-the-phase variations on the shelf and in the deep ocean. The de-seasonalized anomalies of the halosteric and thermosteric heights at Tofino are coherent at time scales of less than 20 months. At time scales less than 5 months, both are correlated with winds over a mid-latitude zone extending from coast to offshore, and at time scale of 5–20 months both are correlated with the winds in the same mid latitude band and with winds in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.

Spatiotemporal characteristics of the time of emergence for anthropogenic tropospheric temperature changes based on the CMIP6 multi-model results

In the 20th century, with the intensification of human activities, the Earth is experiencing unprecedented warming. However, there are certain differences in the sensitivity of temperature changes to anthropogenic forcings in different regions and at different altitudes of the troposphere. The time of emergence (TOE) is the key point at which the anthropogenic climate change signal exceeds from the internal climate variability serving as a noise. It is a crucial variable for climate change detection, climate prediction and risk assessment. Here, we systematically analyzed the spatiotemporal characteristics of the TOE of temperature changes over the past century by calculating the SNR based on the selected CMIP6 multi-model outputs. The results show that the temperature TOE, particularly in the lower and middle troposphere, shows distinct latitude dependence, displaying an ‘M-type’ distribution from the Antarctic to the Arctic: it first appears in low-latitudes, followed by high-latitudes, and last appears in the two mid latitude bands. For the tropics, the TOE of tropospheric temperatures becomes earlier with increasing altitude: the TOE of air temperatures at the surface, mid-tropospheric 500 hPa and upper-tropospheric 200 hPa occurs in 1980 ± 15, 1965 ± 20, and 1930 ± 30, respectively. The TOEs of tropospheric temperatures in eastern equatorial Pacific are 10–30 years later than those in the western equatorial Pacific. For the regional TOEs of surface air temperature diverse differences exist on land and ocean in various latitudes of two hemispheres.

Neutral Mode Dominates the Forced Global and Regional Surface Temperature Response in the Past and Future

AbstractUsing a large suite of Green's function perturbation experiments, we construct the emergent dynamical operator for surface temperature and extract the most excitable mode. The leading mode turns out to be the most dominant mode excited by the climate forcing of doubling CO2, alone capturing 56% of the total spatial variances of the surface temperature response. The pattern of the leading mode is partly organized by the atmospheric annular modes in both hemispheres, and further modulated by the feedbacks from ocean circulations. Though derived from a single model, the leading mode can capture the spatio‐temporal variabilities of the global mean surface temperature over the past century in both the CMIP6 model simulations and observations. Moreover, the leading mode is most efficiently excited by radiative forcings from the midlatitude bands centered around 45°N and 25°S, where most human activities take place, suggesting the potency of human influence on the climate change.

A European aerosol phenomenology - 7: High-time resolution chemical characteristics of submicron particulate matter across Europe

Similarities and differences in the submicron atmospheric aerosol chemical composition are analyzed from a unique set of measurements performed at 21 sites across Europe for at least one year. These sites are located between 35 and 62°N and 10° W – 26°E, and represent various types of settings (remote, coastal, rural, industrial, urban). Measurements were all carried out on-line with a 30-min time resolution using mass spectroscopy based instruments known as Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitors (ACSM) and Aerosol Mass Spectrometers (AMS) and following common measurement guidelines. Data regarding organics, sulfate, nitrate and ammonium concentrations, as well as the sum of them called non-refractory submicron aerosol mass concentration ([NR-PM1]) are discussed. NR-PM1 concentrations generally increase from remote to urban sites. They are mostly larger in the mid-latitude band than in southern and northern Europe. On average, organics account for the major part (36–64%) of NR-PM1 followed by sulfate (12–44%) and nitrate (6–35%). The annual mean chemical composition of NR-PM1 at rural (or regional background) sites and urban background sites are very similar. Considering rural and regional background sites only, nitrate contribution is higher and sulfate contribution is lower in mid-latitude Europe compared to northern and southern Europe. Large seasonal variations in concentrations (μg/m³) of one or more components of NR-PM1 can be observed at all sites, as well as in the chemical composition of NR-PM1 (%) at most sites. Significant diel cycles in the contribution to [NR-PM1] of organics, sulfate, and nitrate can be observed at a majority of sites both in winter and summer. Early morning minima in organics in concomitance with maxima in nitrate are common features at regional and urban background sites. Daily variations are much smaller at a number of coastal and rural sites. Looking at NR-PM1 chemical composition as a function of NR-PM1 mass concentration reveals that although organics account for the major fraction of NR-PM1 at all concentration levels at most sites, nitrate contribution generally increases with NR-PM1 mass concentration and predominates when NR-PM1 mass concentrations exceed 40 μg/m³ at half of the sites.

Global climate model occultation lightcurves tested by August 2018 ground-based stellar occultation

Pluto's atmospheric profiles (temperature and pressure) have been studied for decades from stellar occultation lightcurves. In this paper, we look at recent Pluto Global Climate Model (GCM) results (3D temperature, pressure, and density fields) from Bertrand et al. (2020) and use the results to generate model observer's plane intensity fields (OPIF) and lightcurves by using a Fourier optics scheme to model light passing through Pluto's atmosphere (Young, 2012). This approach can accommodate arbitrary atmospheric structures and 3D distributions of haze. We compared the GCM model lightcurves with the lightcurves observed during the 15-AUG-2018 Pluto stellar occultation. We find that the climate scenario which best reproduces the observed data includes a N2 ice mid latitude band in the southern hemisphere. We have also studied different haze and P/T ratio profiles: the haze effectively reduces the central flash strength, and a lower P/T ratio both reduces the central flash strength and incurs anomalies in the shoulders of the central flash.

On the calculation of latitudinal insolation gradients throughout the Holocene

In paleoclimatology, the concept of latitudinal insolation gradients (LIGs), reckoned in various ways, has received increasing attention regarding glacial/inter-glacial climatic transitions and oscillations. In particular, the Holocene, which permits the reconstruction of past climatic proxies with an increasingly finer spatial and temporal resolutions, has provided evidence that suggests that LIGs are a key forcing on climate at different timescales. Nevertheless, LIGs’ own dynamics (chiefly their variations in relation to astronomical parameters and geographical zones) and even basic definitions, have not been properly investigated, especially during the last part of the present geological epoch. The main reason is the lack of broadly accessible, theoretical insolation data that account for short-term orbital variations (i.e., for describing sub-Milanković-orbital forcing during the Holocene). Based on our latest astronomical-orbital solutions, we present an in-depth discussion on the calculation of LIGs and their variations all through the Holocene and 1 kyr into the future. Our results show a much more complex variety and behaviour of LIGs than those that were shown previously. We report that during the studied period, daily LIGs in summer, around the solstitial days (both hemispheres), are strongly modulated by obliquity only at mid-latitude band, whereas at tropical and polar bands LIGs are modulated by “precession”. Summer half-year LIGs for the Northern Hemisphere show a marked modulation in out-of-phase sense with obliquity, just for the mid-latitude and polar bands. Surprisingly, this competing effect between “precession” and obliquity also produces the fact that the southern counterpart of these LIGs are more modulated by “precession” than obliquity. In cases involving inter-band latitudes or different intra-annual lapses, they need to be examined separately and carefully and the results could be very different from traditional presumptions. Our novel results and study are based on the precise estimation of the duration of the orbital interval considered in the definition of LIGs. Our new study also avoids the difficulties of insolation calculations regarding the relationship between orbital longitudes and time.

Sensitivity of Atmospheric Rivers to Damping of Midlatitude Subseasonal Variability

AbstractWe examine how atmospheric rivers (ARs) over the North Pacific basin respond to relaxation in midlatitudes in sets of reforecasts made with the Community Atmosphere Model using superparameterized convection. The study focuses on January–March 2015 with weekly staggered initial conditions and sea surface temperature prescribed. In one set of reforecasts, zonal and meridional winds, temperature, and specific humidity are relaxed within the midlatitude band 40–70°N and compared with a control set of reforecasts made without relaxation. Meteorological parameters are relaxed to the smooth seasonal evolution of the control simulations (the seasonal mean, trend, and parabolic fit), about which subseasonal deviations are damped. Relaxation has a systematic impact on the Pacific circulation and on different AR types. Damping subseasonal variability acts to anchor the West Pacific trough and deepen height anomalies at 40°N, as well as modify the total number and duration of AR events. Although largely offset by changes in the number of events, individual AR events with moisture originating from midlatitudes tend to have shorter lifetimes, while AR events with moisture from the tropics tend to last longer.

Determination of zenith hydrostatic delay and its impact on GNSS-derived integrated water vapor

Abstract. Surface pressure is a necessary meteorological variable for the accurate determination of integrated water vapor (IWV) using Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The lack of pressure observations is a big issue for the conversion of historical GNSS observations, which is a relatively new area of GNSS applications in climatology. Hence the use of the surface pressure derived from either a blind model (e.g., Global Pressure and Temperature 2 wet, GPT2w) or a global atmospheric reanalysis (e.g., ERA-Interim) becomes an important alternative solution. In this study, pressure derived from these two methods is compared against the pressure observed at 108 global GNSS stations at four epochs (00:00, 06:00, 12:00 and 18:00 UTC) each day for the period 2000–2013. Results show that a good accuracy is achieved from the GPT2w-derived pressure in the latitude band between −30 and 30° and the average value of 6 h root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) across all the stations in this region is 2.5 hPa. Correspondingly, an error of 5.8 mm and 0.9 kg m−2 in its resultant zenith hydrostatic delay (ZHD) and IWV is expected. However, for the stations located in the mid-latitude bands between −30 and −60° and between 30 and 60°, the mean value of the RMSEs is 7.3 hPa, and for the stations located in the high-latitude bands from −60 to −90° and from 60 to 90°, the mean value of the RMSEs is 9.9 hPa. The mean of the RMSEs of the ERA-Interim-derived pressure across at the selected 100 stations is 0.9 hPa, which will lead to an equivalent error of 2.1 mm and 0.3 kg m−2 in the ZHD and IWV, respectively, determined from this ERA-Interim-derived pressure. Results also show that the monthly IWV determined using pressure from ERA-Interim has a good accuracy − with a relative error of better than 3 % on a global scale; thus, the monthly IWV resulting from ERA-Interim-derived pressure has the potential to be used for climate studies, whilst the monthly IWV resulting from GPT2w-derived pressure has a relative error of 6.7 % in the mid-latitude regions and even reaches 20.8 % in the high-latitude regions. The comparison between GPT2w and seasonal models of pressure–ZHD derived from ERA-Interim and pressure observations indicates that GPT2w captures the seasonal variations in pressure–ZHD very well.

On the relationship between the QBO/ENSO and atmospheric temperature using COSMIC radio occultation data

In this paper, the spatial patterns and vertical structure of atmospheric temperature anomalies, in both the tropics and the extratropical latitudes, associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) in the upper troposphere and stratosphere are investigated using global positioning system (GPS) radio occultation (RO) measurements from the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate (COSMIC) Formosa Satellite Mission 3 mission from July 2006 to February 2014. We find that negative correlations between the atmospheric temperature in the tropics and ENSO are observed at 17–30km in the lower stratosphere at a lag of 1–4 months and at a lead of 1 month. Out-of-phase temperature variation is observed in the troposphere over the mid-latitude band and in-phase behaviour is observed in the lower stratosphere. Interestingly, we also find that there is a significant negative correlation at a lag of 1–3 months from 32km to 40km in the mid-latitude region of the Northern Hemisphere. The atmospheric temperature variations over mid-latitude regions in both hemispheres are closely related to the QBO. There are also two narrow zones over the subtropical jet zone where the QBO signals are strong in both hemispheres, approximately parallel to the equator. Finally, we develop a new robust index to describe the strength of the ENSO and QBO signal.

Seasonal variations of acetone in the upper troposphere–lower stratosphere of the northern midlatitudes as observed by ACE-FTS

This study reports on the climatological acetone distribution and seasonal variations in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere of the northern midlatitudes, derived from observations by the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) onboard SCISAT. The acetone profiles retrieved from 5 to ∼20km cover the period from January 2004 to September 2010. The 1σ statistical fitting errors are typically ∼5–20% within the upper troposphere (UT), increasing in the lower stratosphere (LS) with decreasing acetone. The systematic errors range between 15% and 20%. The largest UT acetone mixing ratios (∼1200ppt on average in July over Siberia) are observed in summer in the northern mid- and high latitudes. Mixing ratios are larger over continental regions than over the ocean. Comparisons with airborne measurements available in the literature point toward a possible underestimation in acetone retrieved from ACE-FTS. The largest differences occur primarily in winter and for the background values. This underestimation is attributed to the complexity of the spectral region used for the retrieval. The annual cycle of acetone for the 30–70°N midlatitude band shows a maximum during summer, reflecting the annual cycle of the primary terrestrial biogenic source of acetone. By comparison with ACE-FTS, the LMDz-INCA global climate-chemistry model systematically overestimates acetone mixing ratios lower than 400ppt. This overestimation is thus generalized for the lower stratosphere, the Tropics and beyond 70°N for the upper troposphere. In contrast, in the upper troposphere of the 30–70°N region, where the acetone levels are the highest (>450ppt on average), the model-observation differences are in the range of the observation uncertainty. However, in this region, the model fails to capture the annual cycle of acetone, culminating in July. A seasonal cycle can only be obtained by considering high biogenic emissions but this cycle is shifted toward autumn, likely indicating an underestimation of the chemical destruction in the northern high latitudes.

Variability in projected elevation dependent warming in boreal midlatitude winter in CMIP5 climate models and its potential drivers

The future rate of climate change in mountains has many potential human impacts, including those related to water resources, ecosystem services, and recreation. Analysis of the ensemble mean response of CMIP5 global climate models (GCMs) shows amplified warming in high elevation regions during the cold season in boreal midlatitudes. We examine how the twenty-first century elevation-dependent response in the daily minimum surface air temperature [d(ΔTmin)/dz] varies among 27 different GCMs during winter for the RCP 8.5 emissions scenario. The focus is on regions within the northern hemisphere mid-latitude band between 27.5°N and 40°N, which includes both the Rocky Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau/Himalayas. We find significant variability in d(ΔTmin)/dz among the individual models ranging from 0.16 °C/km (10th percentile) to 0.97 °C/km (90th percentile), although nearly all of the GCMs (24 out of 27) show a significant positive value for d(ΔTmin)/dz. To identify some of the important drivers associated with the variability in d(ΔTmin)/dz during winter, we evaluate the co-variance between d(ΔTmin)/dz and the differential response of elevation-based anomalies in different climate variables as well as the GCMs’ spatial resolution, their global climate sensitivity, and their elevation-dependent free air temperature response. We find that d(ΔTmin)/dz has the strongest correlation with elevation-dependent increases in surface water vapor, followed by elevation-dependent decreases in surface albedo, and a weak positive correlation with the GCMs’ free air temperature response.

Amplified warming projections for high altitude regions of the northern hemisphere mid-latitudes from CMIP5 models

We use output from global climate models available from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) for three different greenhouse gas emission scenarios to investigate whether the projected warming in mountains by the end of the 21st century is significantly different from that in low elevation regions. To remove the effects of latitudinal variation in warming rates, we focus on seasonal changes in the mid-latitude band of the northern hemisphere between 27.5° N and 40° N, where the two major mountain systems are the Tibetan Plateau/Himalayas in Asia and the Rocky Mountains in the United States. Results from the multi-model ensemble indicate that warming rates in mountains will be enhanced relative to non-mountain regions at the same latitude, particularly during the cold season. The strongest correlations of enhanced warming with elevation are obtained for the daily minimum temperature during winter, with the largest increases found for the Tibetan Plateau/Himalayas. The model projections indicate that this occurs, in part, because of proportionally greater increases in downward longwave radiation at higher elevations in response to increases in water vapor. The mechanisms for enhanced increases in winter and spring maximum temperatures in the Rockies appear to be influenced more by increases in surface absorption of solar radiation owing to a reduced snow cover. Furthermore, the amplification of warming with elevation is greater for a higher greenhouse gas emission scenario.

Climatology and first-order composition estimates of mesospheric clouds from Mars Climate Sounder limb spectra

Mesospheric clouds have been previously observed on Mars in a variety of datasets. However, because the clouds are optically thin and most missions have performed surface-focussed nadir sounding, geographic and seasonal coverage is sparse. We present new detections of mesospheric clouds using a limb spectra dataset with global coverage acquired by NASA’s Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) aboard Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Mesospheric aerosol layers, which can be CO2 ice, water ice or dust clouds, cause high radiances in limb spectra, either by thermal emission or scattering of sunlight. We employ an object recognition and classification algorithm to identify and map aerosol layers in limb spectra acquired between December 2006 and April 2011, covering more than two Mars years. We use data from MCS band A4, to show thermal signatures of day and nightside features, and A6, which is sensitive to short wave IR and visible daytime features only. This large dataset provides several thousand detections of mesospheric clouds, more than an order of magnitude more than in previous studies.Our results show that aerosol layers tend to occur in two distinct regimes. They form in equatorial regions (30°S–30°N) during the aphelion season/northern hemisphere summer (Ls<150°), which is in agreement with previous published observations of mesospheric clouds. During perihelion/dust storm season (Ls>150°) a greater number of features are observed and are distributed in two mid-latitude bands, with a southern hemisphere bias. We observe temporal and longitudinal clustering of cloud occurrence, which we suggest is consistent with a formation mechanism dictated by interaction of broad temperature regimes imposed by global circulation and the propagation to the mesosphere of small-scale dynamics such as gravity waves and thermal tides.Using calculated frost point temperatures and a parameterization based on synthetic spectra we find that aphelion clouds are present in generally cooler conditions and are spectrally more consistent with H2O or CO2 ice. A significant fraction has nearby temperature retrievals that are within a few degrees of the CO2 frost point, indicating a CO2 composition for those clouds. Perihelion season clouds are spectrally most similar to H2O ice and dust aerosols, consistent with temperature retrievals near to the clouds that are 30–80K above the CO2 frost point.

Fluvial landforms on fresh impact ejecta on Mars

Fluvial valleys provide critical clues to the distribution and state of water throughout the history of the planet Mars. Early in Mars’ history (<3.7Gy), the climate may have been warmer than at present leading to the development of valley networks. Younger valleys formed on volcanic and glacial landforms under colder conditions than experienced in Mars’ early history. Only rare examples of fluvial valleys over fresh impact craters have been reported. In the present study, a survey of hundreds of fresh post-Noachian impact craters (of 12 to 150km in diameter) has been done to identify fluvial landforms, especially in regions lacking ancient valleys, using images from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) instrument onboard Mars Express and from the Context Camera (CTX) instrument onboard Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Observations show that these valleys are locally sinuous, display isolated channels, a poor connectivity and frequent braiding. Valleys were most likely formed over a short duration with high discharge rates, estimated from 500 to 40,000m3s−1. In Arabia Terra, a total of 27 out of the 204 surveyed craters were found to have fluvial landforms on the ejecta blanket, exclusively in the mid-latitude band (25–45°). Dating of impact ejecta gives young ages from the Late Hesperian to the Middle Amazonian, thus providing a temporal constraint for the fluvial activity. Late climatic episodes of snow deposition and subsequent melting scattered in space and time could explain observations. Alternatively, the thermal anomaly of impacts and their ejecta over ice-bearing terrains is a possible triggering mechanism for the observed fluvial valleys. Calculations show that the thermal anomaly can persist in the ejecta over several hundreds of years for mid-size craters (20–40km). Such a process would not explain all Martian fluvial activity because of the marked difference between the pristine landforms described and Late Noachian valley networks. Nevertheless, fluvial landforms on preserved ejecta blankets can be used as a new proxy for the temporal distribution of water on Mars.

Analysis of HCl and ClO time series in the upper stratosphere using satellite data sets

Abstract. Previous analyses of satellite and ground-based measurements of hydrogen chloride (HCl) and chlorine monoxide (ClO) have suggested that total inorganic chlorine in the upper stratosphere is on the decline. We create HCl and ClO time series using satellite data sets extended to November 2008, so that an update can be made on the long term evolution of these two species. We use the HALogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE) and the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) data for the HCl analysis, and the Odin Sub-Millimetre Radiometer (SMR) and the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (Aura-MLS) measurements for the study of ClO. Altitudes between 35 and 45 km and two mid-latitude bands: 30° S–50° S and 30° N–50° N, for HCl, and 20° S–20° N for ClO and HCl are studied. ACE-FTS and HALOE HCl anomaly time series (with QBO and seasonal contributions removed) are combined to produce all instrument average time series, which show HCl to be reducing from peak 1997 values at a linear estimated rate of −5.1 % decade−1 in the Northern Hemisphere and −5.2 % decade−1 in the Southern Hemisphere, while the tropics show a linear trend of −5.8 % per decade (although we do not remove the QBO contribution there due to sparse data). Trend values are significantly different from a zero trend at the 2 sigma level. ClO is decreasing in the tropics by −7.1 % ± 7.8 % decade−1 based on measurements made from December 2001 to November 2008. The statistically significant downward trend found in HCl after 1997 and the apparent downward ClO trend since 2001 (although not statistically significant) confirm how effective the 1987 Montreal protocol objectives and its amendments have been in reducing the total amount of inorganic chlorine.

Simulations of Processes Associated with the Fast Warming Rate of the Southern Midlatitude Ocean

Abstract Significant warming has occurred across many of the world’s oceans throughout the latter part of the twentieth-century. The increase in the oceanic heat content displays a considerable spatial difference, with a maximum in the 35°–50°S midlatitude band. The relative importance of wind and surface heat flux changes in driving the warming pattern is the subject of much debate. Using wind, oceanic temperature, and heat flux outputs from twentieth-century multimodel experiments, conducted for the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the authors were able to reproduce the fast, deep warming in the midlatitude band; however, this warming is unable to be accounted for by local heat flux changes. The associated vertical structure and zonal distribution are consistent with a Sverdrup-type response to poleward-strengthening winds, with a poleward shift of the Southern Hemisphere (SH) supergyre and the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. However, the shift is not adiabatic and involves a net oceanic heat content increase over the SH, which can only be forced by changes in the net surface heat flux. Counterintuitively, the heat required for the fast, deep warming is largely derived from the surface heat fluxes south of 50°S, where the surface flux into the ocean is far larger than that of the midlatitude band. The heat south of 50°S is advected northward by an enhanced northward Ekman transport induced by the poleward-strengthening winds and penetrates northward and downward along the outcropping isopycnals to a depth of over 1000 m. However, because none of the models resolve eddies and given that eddy fluxes could offset the increase in the northward Ekman transport, the heat source for the fast, deep warming in the midlatitude band could be rather different in the real world.

Sulfuric acid deposition from stratospheric geoengineering with sulfate aerosols

We used a general circulation model of Earth's climate to conduct geoengineering experiments involving stratospheric injection of sulfur dioxide and analyzed the resulting deposition of sulfate. When sulfur dioxide is injected into the tropical or Arctic stratosphere, the main additional surface deposition of sulfate occurs in midlatitude bands, because of strong cross‐tropopause flux in the jet stream regions. We used critical load studies to determine the effects of this increase in sulfate deposition on terrestrial ecosystems by assuming the upper limit of hydration of all sulfate aerosols into sulfuric acid. For annual injection of 5 Tg of SO2 into the tropical stratosphere or 3 Tg of SO2 into the Arctic stratosphere, neither the maximum point value of sulfate deposition of approximately 1.5 mEq m−2 a−1 nor the largest additional deposition that would result from geoengineering of approximately 0.05 mEq m−2 a−1 is enough to negatively impact most ecosystems.

Ancient melting of mid-latitude snowpacks on Mars as a water source for gullies

We hypothesize that during past epochs of high obliquity seasonal snowfields at mid-latitudes melted to produce springtime sediment-rich surface flows resulting in gully formation. Significant seasonal mid-latitude snowfall does not occur on Mars today. General Circulation Model (GCM) results, however, suggest that under past climate conditions there may have been centimeters of seasonal mid-latitude snowfall [Mischna, M.A., Richardson, M.I., Wilson, R.J., McCleese, D.J., 2003. J. Geophys. Res. Planets 108, doi:10.1029/2003JE002051. 5062]. Gully locations have been tabulated by several researchers (e.g. [Heldmann, J.L., Mellon, M.T., 2004. Icarus 168, 285–304; Heldmann, J.L., Carlsson, E., Johansson, H., Mellon, M.T., Toon, O.B., 2007. Icarus 188, 324–344; Malin, M.C., Edgett, K.S., 2000. Science 288, 2330–2335]) and found to correspond to mid-latitude bands. A natural question is whether the latitudinal bands where the gullies are located correspond to areas where the ancient snowfalls may have melted, producing runoff which may have incised gullies. In this study we model thin snowpacks with thicknesses similar to those predicted by [Mischna, M.A., Richardson, M.I., Wilson, R.J., McCleese, D.J., 2003. J. Geophys. Res. Planets 108, doi:10.1029/2003JE002051. 5062]. We model these snowpacks under past climate regimes in order to determine whether snowmelt runoff could have occurred, and whether significant amounts of warm soil ( T > 273 K ) existed on both poleward and equatorward slopes in the regions where gullies exist. Both warm soil and water amounts are modeled because soil and water may have mixed to form a sediment-rich flow. We begin by applying the snowpack model of Williams et al. [Williams, K.E., Toon, O.B., Heldmann, J.E., Mellon, M., 2008. Icarus 196, 565–577] to past climate regimes characterized by obliquities of 35° (600 ka before present) and 45° (5.5 ma before present), and to all latitudes between 70° N and 70° S. We find that the regions containing significant snowmelt runoff correspond to the regions identified by Heldmann and Mellon [Heldmann, J.L., Mellon, M.T., 2004. Icarus 168, 285–304], Heldmann et al. [Heldmann, J.L., Carlsson, E., Johansson, H., Mellon, M.T., Toon, O.B., 2007. Icarus 188, 324–344] and Malin and Edgett [Malin, M.C., Edgett, K.S., 2000. Science 288, 2330–2335] as containing large numbers of gullies. We find that the snowmelt runoff (>1 mm, with equivalent rainfall rates of 0.25 mm/h) and warm soil (>1 cm depth) would have occurred on slopes within the gullied latitudinal bands. The snowfall amounts modeled are predicted to be seasonal [Mischna, M.A., Richardson, M.I., Wilson, R.J., McCleese, D.J., 2003. J. Geophys. Res. Planets 108, doi:10.1029/2003JE002051. 5062], and our modeling finds that under the previous climate regimes there would have been meltwater present on the slopes in question for brief periods of time, on the order of days, each year. Our model provides a simple explanation for the latitudinal distribution of the gullies, and also suggests that the gullies date to times when water migrated away from the present poles to the mid-latitudes.

Global surface currents: a high-resolution product for investigating ocean dynamics

A global 1/4° resolution product of surface currents has been developed by the Centre de Topographie des Oceans et de l’Hydrosphere. The surface current is calculated from a combination of Ekman currents derived from wind estimates from QuikSCAT satellite, geostrophic current anomalies derived from altimetry, and a mean geostrophic current derived from climatology. In the equatorial band, the currents are adjusted following the methodology proposed by Lagerloef et al. (J Geophys Res, 104(C10):22313–22326, 1999). These satellite-derived currents have been compared to different types of in situ current observations. A global validation is performed using Lagrangian surface drifting buoys and acoustic Doppler current profiler current observations along ship tracks. The comparison shows a very good agreement in the subtropical and mid-latitude bands. The correlation between the satellite-derived currents and the drifter currents in zonal mean bands is around 0.7 for most of the world oceans, both for the zonal and the meridional components. This correlation rises up to 0.8 in the regions of strong boundary currents. In the equatorial band, the correlation with the surface drifting buoys is reduced. A direct comparison with the TOGA/TAO moored current meter data at the equator shows that the low frequency currents are captured by the satellite current product, but there is a substantial high-frequency signal (<20 days), which is not reproduced. This is especially the case for the meridional component and is mainly related to the tropical instability waves. We also show that using daily QuikSCAT wind forcing improves the satellite current product, particularly in the high-latitude westerly wind belt and in the tropical Indian Ocean.

Imaging science at El Leoncito, Argentina

Abstract. Thermospheric and mesospheric structures are studied using an all-sky imager located at El Leoncito, Argentina (31.8° S, 69.3° W, –18° mag lat). This site has relatively high geographic latitude for a location under the crest of the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA), and thus observations can be used to study the intrusion of several equatorial processes into the midlatitude domain. In addition, it has a conjugate point close to the field of view of our companion imager at Arecibo, PR, allowing for the study of inter-hemispheric effects. Four types of phenomena were studied using 630.0 nm and 777.4 nm observations: (1) highly-structured airglow depletions associated with the Rayleigh-Taylor instability/equatorial spread-F (RTI/ESF) process, (2) brightness waves (BW) associated with the midnight temperature maximum (MTM), (3) strong airglow enhancements associated with the positive phase of ionospheric storms, and (4) simple (non-structured) bands of airglow depletions with characteristics matching a Perkins-like instability. Using 557.7 nm mesospheric observations, a fifth category of study deals with gravity waves probably generated by lower atmospheric disturbances, and mesospheric bores related to strong vertical temperature gradients. While ESF depletions and BW events are detected fairly frequently, the mid-latitude bands are not, and thus their successful imaging at El Leoncito offers the first example of the coupling from mid-latitudes to low-latitudes in the South American longitude sector. Preliminary results on these features are presented in this paper. Taken together, these five types of optical structures offer the opportunity to investigate coupling, both in altitude and latitude, of aeronomic processes at low latitudes in an under-sampled longitude sector in the Southern Hemisphere.