Enhanced mid-latitude tropospheric warming in satellite measurements.
The spatial distribution of tropospheric and stratospheric temperature trends for 1979 to 2005 was examined, based on radiances from satellite-borne microwave sounding units that were processed with state-of-the-art retrieval algorithms. We found that relative to the global-mean trends of the respective layers, both hemispheres have experienced enhanced tropospheric warming and stratospheric cooling in the 15 to 45 degrees latitude belt, which is a pattern indicative of a widening of the tropical circulation and a poleward shift of the tropospheric jet streams and their associated subtropical dry zones. This distinctive spatial pattern in the trends appears to be a robust feature of this 27-year record.
Fu
Qiang
Q
Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA. qfu@atmos.washington.edu
Johanson
Celeste M
CM
Wallace
John M
JM
Reichler
Thomas
T