Climate change and the middle atmosphere. Part I: the doubled CO2 climate

Abstract

The impact of doubled atmospheric CO2 on the climate of the middle atmosphere is investigated using the GISS global climate/middle atmosphere model. As expected, doubled CO2 produces warmer temperatures in the troposphere, and generally cooler temperatures in the stratosphere. The net result is a decrease of static stability for the atmosphere as a whole. In addition, the 100 mb warming maximizes in the tropics, leading to improved propagation conditions for planetary waves, and increased potential energy in the lower stratosphere. These processes generate increased eddy energy in the middle atmosphere in most seasons. The middle atmosphere dynamical differences are on the order of 10-20% of the model values for the current climate, and, along with the calculated temperature differences of up to some 10°C. -from Authors