Annual Cycles and Climatologies

The seasonal cycle is our planet’s largest climate signal, and is the largest form of environmental change seen in the NEP. Interannual to decadal and other long-term variations are strongly affected by the seasonal cycle and may be driven by similar mechanisms to those responsible for the seasonal evolution of the ocean.

Seasonal climatologies of the observed ocean and atmospheric fields -- such as wind, SST, and subsurface temperature -- and derivatives of these fields -- such as wind stress curl and mixed layer depth -- are being computed from the NCEP reanalyses, COADS, and WODB. The spatial texture of the annual cycles are being analyzed. From these climatologies, we are identifying the mechanisms that lead to the seasonal evolution of the ocean in the NEP.

We are currently analyzing the relationship between the seasonal evolution of the NEP and longer term climate shifts. The seasonal cycles of key observed and modeled upper ocean fields will be related to atmospheric forcing fields, and compared with the patterns and mechanisms of similar changes in the interannual and decadal scales, with emphasis on major interannual (e.g., El Niño and La Niña) events. In addition, these climatologies are the basis of anomalies and series tendencies that are being created to describe interannual to decadal environmental variability.

Animations of selected variables

• 100m ST and WSC Climatology
• SLP and Surface Wind Anomalies
• Wind Stress Curl Anomalies

Live Access Server , download climatologies from PFEL:

• The PFEL Live Access Server