Enhanced signature of solar variability in Eurasian winter climate

We demonstrate that open solar flux (F-s, derivable from geomagnetic data) exhibits stronger correlations with atmospheric circulation variations than conventionally-used measures of solar activity. The circulation anomalies are particularly enhanced over the North Atlantic/Eurasian sector, where there are large changes in the occurrence of blocking and the winter mean surface temperature differs by several degrees between high-and low-solar terciles. The relationship is stronger and simpler for F-s, being more linear between high- and low-solar winters. While the circulation anomalies strongly resemble the North Atlantic Oscillation they also extend deeper into Eurasia, especially in high-solar conditions. This distinct signature may be useful for the detection and attribution of observed changes and also the identification of dynamical mechanisms. Citation: Woollings, T., M. Lockwood, G. Masato, C. Bell, and L. Gray (2010), Enhanced signature of solar variability in Eurasian winter climate, Geophys. Res. Lett., 37, L20805, doi:10.1029/2010GL044601.