On spectra and coherence of tropical climate anomalies.

Abstract

Time series of hydrometeorological indices from key tropical land areas, of sea surface temperature (SST), and of sea level pressure (SLP) for various latitude zones of the Atlantic, as compiled from ship observations, form the major basis for a study of variance and coherence characteristics of tropical circulation and climate. SLP in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific and SLP and SST in the Atlantic show large variance in the long end of the spectrum, thus reflecting the inertia and trend of atmosphere and hydrosphere. However, a marked preference for SLP variations is apparent around 2.5 yr in the Equatorial Atlantic, and around 6 and 20 yr in the N Australian region.-from Author