Teleconnections into South America from the Tropics and Extratropics on Interannual and Intraseasonal Timescales

Abstract

This chapter presents the mechanisms and the most important effects of tropics-extratropics and tropics-tropics atmospheric teleconnections with South America on intra-seasonal to interannual time scales. The basis for theoretical understanding of teleconnections is reviewed, as well as the observed Southern Hemisphere interannual and intraseasonal variability. The observed teleconnections with South America are described, indicating linkages between the tropics and extratropics and between different regions in the tropics. Possible mechanisms of these linkages are presented and some teleconnections are analyzed with Influence Functions. Special emphasis is placed on the teleconnections associated with ENSO on interannual time scales and the Madden Julian Oscillation on intraseasonal time scales.