Decadal prediction of observed and simulated sea surface temperatures

Abstract

A multivariate regression model derived from climate model simulations is shown to produce skillful predictions of unforced, annual mean sea surface temperature variations on multiyear time scales in observations and climate model simulations. Patterns that can be predicted with skill are identified explicitly and shown to arise from a combination of persistence and coupled interactions in the Pacific Ocean. Adding the regression model predictions to an estimate of the response to anthropogenic and natural forcing yields a prediction with higher skill than either alone, demonstrating the contribution of initial condition information to skill on multiyear time scales.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jun 03, 2013
Source ID
10.1002/grl.50185

Entities

People

  • Liwei Jia
  • Michael K. Tippett
  • Timothy DelSole

Organizations

  • George Mason University
  • King Abdulaziz University
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
  • National Science Foundation
  • Office of Naval Research
  • The Earth Institute
  • United States Department of Energy

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science / Meteorology, specifically Wind Wave Turbulence.
  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Ocean-Atmosphere Mesoscale Modeling, Data Assimilation, and Flux Boundary Layers