The radiative-dynamical response of a stratospheric-tropospheric general circulation model to changes in ozone

Abstract

A version of the NCAR Community Climate Model is used for perpetual January conditions. The imposed changes include both uniform ozone reductions of 50, 75 and 100% and an ozone reduction scenario calculated from a two-dimensional chemical model. We compare the response of the general circulation model to a model that employs a fixed dynamical heating assumption. The uniform ozone reduction cases are not well modeled by assuming fixed dynamical heating, but model response to the ozone scenario is well modeled by the fixed dynamical heating model. For large ozone reduction (less then or equal to 75%), the Southern Hemisphere easterly jet is insensitive to ozone reductions. The Northern Hemisphere jet remains relatively constant for ozone reductions as large as 50%. For a 75% reduction in ozone the Northern Hemisphere jet is severely reduced. -from Authors