May 4, 2006
Weakening of tropical Pacific atmospheric circulation due to anthropogenic forcing
by
,
Nature
- Explores changes in tropical Pacific circulation since the mid-nineteenth century using observations and a suite of global climate model experiments
- States that observed Indo-Pacific sea level pressure reveals a weakening of the Walker circulation
- States that the size of this trend is consistent with theoretical predictions, is accurately reproduced by climate model simulations and, within the climate models, is largely due to anthropogenic
- Finds that the climate model indicates the weakened surface winds have altered the thermal structure and circulation of the tropical Pacific Ocean
- These results support model projections of further weakening of tropical atmospheric circulation during the twenty-first century