Dr Harry West Harry.West@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in Geography & Environmental Management
Regional rainfall response to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) across Great Britain
West, Harry; Quinn, Nevil; Horswell, Michael
Authors
Professor Nevil Quinn Nevil.Quinn@uwe.ac.uk
Professor in Applied Hydrology
Michael Horswell Michael.Horswell@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in GIS & Spatial Analysis
Abstract
© IWA Publishing 2019. The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) has been long studied as the primary teleconnection affecting the British and European climate. However, previous studies have focused on extremes or have been spatially and temporally limited. In recent years, our ability to predict the NAO has improved. Also, new research is emerging, suggesting that the NAO is a key driver of hydrological extremes. These factors mean that there is a renewed value in enhancing our understanding of how the NAO influences general rainfall patterns. In this study, we spatially analyse correlations between NAO indices and monthly rainfall data and the Standardised Precipitation Index. We also map mean monthly rainfall differences under NAO-positive and -negative conditions. Based on our results, we identify three main observations: (I) there is sensitivity in the rainfall patterns to the chosen NAO index; (II) there is a clear winter north/west and south/east divide in rainfall patterns; and (III) the NAO does have an effect on summer rainfall patterns, although the spatiality of these patterns is less distinctive than in winter. As far as we are aware, this is the first national scale, monthly NAO-rainfall analysis undertaken for a long period.
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | May 9, 2019 |
Online Publication Date | May 25, 2019 |
Publication Date | Dec 1, 2019 |
Deposit Date | May 9, 2019 |
Publicly Available Date | May 26, 2020 |
Journal | Hydrology Research |
Print ISSN | 0029-1277 |
Publisher | IWA Publishing |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 50 |
Issue | 6 |
Pages | 1549-1563 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2019.015 |
Keywords | British climate, North Atlantic Oscillation, rainfall patterns, teleconnections, wet/dry continuum |
Public URL | https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/846658 |
Publisher URL | https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2019.015 |
Contract Date | May 29, 2019 |
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West et al - NAO Rainfall Paper.pdf
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Copyright Statement
©IWA Publishing 2019. The definitive peer-reviewed and edited version of this article is published in Hydrology Research 10.2166/nh.2019.015 and is available at https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2019.015
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