Ll. Hood et al., QUASI-DECADAL VARIABILITY OF THE STRATOSPHERE - INFLUENCE OF LONG-TERM SOLAR ULTRAVIOLET VARIATIONS, Journal of the atmospheric sciences, 50(24), 1993, pp. 3941-3958
A multiple regression statistical model is applied to investigate the
existence of upper-stratospheric ozone, temperature, and zonal wind re
sponses to long-term (solar cycle) changes in solar ultraviolet radiat
ion using 11.5 years of reprocessed Nimbus-7 Solar Backscattered Ultra
violet (SBUV) data and 12.4 years of National Meteorological Center (N
MC) data. A positive solar cycle variation of independently measured o
zone and temperature occurs with maximum amplitude near the low-latitu
de stratopause. The seasonal solar regression coefficients near 1 mb f
or both ozone and temperature occur at low latitudes supporting a role
for photochemical and radiative forcing in their origin. Zonal wind p
erturbations that correlate with long-term solar ultraviolet variation
s are a strong function of season and pressure level. Above approximat
ely 2 mbar, the largest solar-correlated zonal wind enhancements occur
at middle winter latitudes near the time of winter solstice in both h
emispheres. The Northern Hemisphere December enhancement at 1 mb was e
specially large, 23 +/- 9 m s-1 from solar minimum to maximum during t
he last solar cycle. The derived ozone, temperature, and zonal wind in
creases with increasing solar ultraviolet flux near the stratopause ar
e larger than predicted by models that consider primarily photochemica
l and radiative processes. The higher ozone and temperature response a
mplitudes at low latitudes may be due to modified ozone transport and
adiabatic temperature changes induced by the dynamical response. If th
e midlatitude winter solstice wind enhancements are solar induced, the
ir high amplitudes require a positive feedback due to wave-mean flow i
nteraction such that the planetary wave drag on the flow is reduced un
der solar maximum conditions.