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At least 19 records

Aerosol Daytime Variations over North and South America Derived from Multiyear AERONET Measurements

This study analyzes the daytime variation of aerosol with seasonal distinction by using multi-year measurements from 54 of the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) sites over North America, South America, and islands in surrounding oceans. The analysis shows a wide range of daily variability of aerosol optical depth (AOO) and Angstrom exponent depending on location and season. Possible reasons for daytime variations are given. The largest AOO daytime variation range at 440 nm, up to 75%, occurs in Mexico City, with maximum AOO in the afternoon. Large AOO daily variations are also observed in the polluted mid-Atlantic U.S. and U.S. West Coast with maximum AOO occurring in the afternoon in the mid-Atlantic U.S., but in the morning in the West Coast. In South American sites during the biomass burning season (August to October), maximum AOO generally occurs in the afternoon. But the daytime variation becomes smaller when sites are influenced more by long-range transported smoke than by local burning. Islands show minimum AOO in the morning and maximum AOO in the afternoon. The diverse patterns of aerosol daytime variation suggest that geostationary satellite measurements would be invaluable for characterizing aerosol temporal variations on regional and continental scales. In particular, simultaneous measurements of aerosols and aerosol precursors from a geostationary satellite would greatly aid in understanding the evolution of aerosol as determined by emissions, chemical transformations, and transport processes.

Zhang, Yan↗

NIMBUS-7 CZCS. Coastal Zone Color Scanner Imagery for Selected Coastal Regions. North America - Europe. South America - Africa - Antarctica. Level 2 Photographic Product

The Nimbus-7 Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) is the first spacecraft instrument devoted to the measurement of ocean color. Although instruments on other satellites have sensed ocean color, their spectral bands, spatial resolution, and dynamic range were optimized for geographical or meteorological use. In the CZCS, every parameter is optimized for use over water to the exclusion of any other type of sensing. The signal-to-noise ratios in the spectral channels sensing reflected solar radiance are higher than those required in the past. These ratios need to be high because the ocean is such a poor reflecting surface that the majority of the signal seen by the reflected energy channels at spacecraft altitudes is backscattered solar radiation from the atmosphere rather than reflected solar energy from the ocean. The CZCS is a conventional multichannel scanning radiometer utilizing a rotating plane mirror at a 45 deg angle to the optic axis of a Cassegrain telescope. The mirror scans 360 deg; however, only 80 deg of data centered on the spacecraft nadir is collected for ocean color measurements. Spatial resolution at spacecraft nadir is 825x825 m with some degradation at the edges of the scan swath. The useful swath width from a spacecraft altitude of 955 km is 1600 km.

Source record↗

Tornadoes in Southeast South America: Mesoscale to Planetary-Scale Environments

Abstract A multiscale analysis of the environment supporting tornadoes in southeast South America (SESA) was conducted based on a self-constructed database of 74 reports. Composites of environmental and convective parameters from ERA5 were generated relative to tornado events. The distribution of the reported tornadoes maximizes over the Argentine plains, while events are rare close to the Andes and south of Sierras de Córdoba. Events are relatively common in all seasons except in winter. Proximity environment evolution shows enhanced instability, deep-layer vertical wind shear, storm-relative helicity, reduced convective inhibition, and a lowered lifting condensation level before or during the development of tornadic storms in SESA. No consistent signal in low-level wind shear is seen during tornado occurrence. However, a curved hodograph with counterclockwise rotation is present. The Significant Tornado Parameter (STP) is also maximized prior to tornadogenesis, most strongly associated with enhanced CAPE. Differences in the convective environment between tornadoes in SESA and the U.S. Great Plains are discussed. On the synoptic scale, tornado events are associated with a strong anomalous trough crossing the southern Andes that triggers lee cyclogenesis, subsequently enhancing the South American low-level jet (SALLJ) that increases moisture advection to support deep convection. This synoptic trough also enhances vertical shear that, along with enhanced instability, sustains organized convection capable of producing tornadic storms. At planetary scales, the tornadic environment is modulated by Rossby wave trains that appear to be forced by convection near northern Australia. Madden–Julian oscillation phase 3 preferentially occurs 1–2 weeks ahead of tornado occurrence. Significance Statement The main goal of this study is to describe what atmospheric conditions (from local to global scales) are present prior to and during tornadic storms impacting southeast South America (SESA). Increasing potential for deep convection, wind shear, and potential for rotating updrafts, as well as reducing convective inhibition and cloud-base height, are predominant a few hours before and during the events in connection to low-level northerly winds enhancing moisture transport to the region. Remote convective activity near northern Australia appears to influence large-scale atmospheric circulation that subsequently triggers convective storms supporting tornadogenesis 1–2 weeks later in SESA. Our findings highlight the importance of accounting for atmospheric processes occurring at different scales to understand and predict tornado occurrences.

Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences↗

Mechanisms Behind the Long‐Distance Diurnal Offshore Precipitation Propagation in Northwestern South America

Abstract Northwestern South America (NWSA) is the rainiest region on Earth, with diurnal precipitation exhibiting extensive westward offshore propagation of up to about 1,200 km in boreal spring (March‐May). The diurnal offshore precipitation propagation begins slowly (3–10 m s −1 ) near the coast of NWSA (<200 km) but accelerates significantly (∼20 m s −1 ) and shows an afternoon enhancement far from the coast (>400 km). However, the driving mechanisms behind this long‐distance precipitation propagation remain unclear. Using a new cloud tracking and classification data set, we found that mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) are the dominant precipitation contributors in the offshore region of NWSA. Cloud tracking shows that the long‐distance propagation and the afternoon enhancement of diurnal precipitation primarily originate from MCSs initiated in the early morning, either over open oceans or from the coast of Central America. Composite tendency analysis shows that MCSs initiated near the coast of Central America have significant upward cooling and moistening signals starting from the surface before initiation. Further analysis of surface diurnal perturbation fields indicates that the land breeze is the primary driving mechanism for MCS initiation. Conversely, for MCSs initiated over open oceans, a significant downward cooling signal from 400 hPa is observed ∼7 hr before initiation, corresponding to the passage of diurnal gravity waves emitted from the Andes. Additionally, our findings highlight the critical role of lower and mid‐level moisture conditions in MCS initiation, alongside the influence of gravity waves.

Hu, Jingyi [Department of Meteorology and Atmosphe↗

A Long-Term GOES Satellite Overshooting Cloud Top and Anvil Cloud Climatology Over South America

The modern-era GOES satellite series began in 1994 with the GOES-8 satellite, and was augmented in 2018 with higher spatial resolution and more frequent imaging when GOES-16 became operational. GOES imagery has provided forecasters and researchers new perspectives into cloud top patterns associated with severe convection, and the ability to better forecast convection in regions without adequate ground-based weather radar coverage. While much attention has been given to convection over North America, convection over South America can be equally, if not more, intense and frequent. Recent studies have demonstrated that overshooting cloud tops (OT) and surrounding anvil clouds can be detected within infrared satellite imagery. Relative storm updraft intensity metrics such as the tropopause-relative infrared brightness temperature, the prominence of an OT relative to its surrounding anvil, and cloud top height can also be derived using automated methods combined with reanalysis data. These automated OT detection and intensity estimation methods have recently been applied to all GOES images collected over South America, in combination with the MERRA-2 reanalysis, from 1995 to 2022 at NASA Langley within a project supported by the NASA Applied Sciences Disasters program. Innovative aggregation methods have merged these products into daily, monthly, annual, and multi-annual composites, with hourly time bins, at ~4 km pixel spacing to enable researchers a new opportunity to study South American convective processes throughout the diurnal cycle. These products have recently become publicly available from NASA. This presentation will overview this new dataset, and novel insights into South American convection depicted by the data.

Kristopher Bedka↗

Investigation of biomass burning and aerosol loading and transport in South America utilizing geostationary satellites

This study attempts to assess the extent of burning and associated aerosol transport regimes in South America and the South Atlantic using geostationary satellite observations, in order to explore the possible roles of biomass burning in climate change and more directly in atmospheric chemistry and radiative transfer processes. Modeling and analysis efforts have suggested that the direct and indirect radiative effects of aerosols from biomass burning may play a major role in the radiative balance of the earth and are an important factor in climate change calculations. One of the most active regions of biomass burning is located in South America, associated with deforestation in the selva (forest), grassland management, and other agricultural practices. As part of the NASA Aerosol Interdisciplinary Program, we are utilizing GOES-7 (1988) and GOES-8 (1995) visible and multispectral infrared data (4, 11, and 12 microns) to document daily biomass burning activity in South America and to distinguish smoke/aerosols from other multi-level clouds and low-level moisture. This study catalogues the areal extent and transport of smoke/aerosols throughout the region and over the Atlantic Ocean for the 1988 (July-September) and 1995 (June-October) biomass burning seasons. The smoke/haze cover estimates are compared to the locations of fires to determine the source and verify the haze is actually associated with biomass burning activities. The temporal resolution of the GOES data (half-hourly in South America) makes it possible to determine the prevailing circulation and transport of aerosols by considering a series of visible and infrared images and tracking the motion of smoke, haze and adjacent clouds. The study area extends from 40 to 70 deg W and 0 to 40 deg S with aerosol coverage extending over the Atlantic Ocean when necessary. Fire activity is estimated with the GOES Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (ABBA). To date, our efforts have focused on GOES-7 and GOES-8 ABBA development, algorithm development for aerosol monitoring, data acquisition and archiving, and participation in the SCAR-C and SCAR-B field programs which have provided valuable information for algorithm testing and validation. Implementation of the initial version of the GEOS-8 ABBA on case studies in North, Central, and South America has demonstrated the improved capability for monitoring diurnal fire activity and smoke/aerosol transport with the GOES-8 throughout the Western Hemisphere.

Menzel, Paul↗

Mantle convection pattern and subcrustal stress field under South America

The tectonic, igneous and metallogenic features of South America are discussed in terms of the crustal deformation associated with stresses due to mantle convection as inferred from the high degree harmonics in the geopotential field. The application of Runcorn's model for the laminar viscous flows in the upper mantle to satellite and gravity data results in a convection pattern which reveals the ascending flows between the descending Nazca plate and the overlying South American plate as well as segments of the descending Nazca plate beneath South America. The arc volcanism in South America is shown apparently to be related to the upwelling of high-temperature material induced by the subduction of the Nazca plate, with the South American basin systems associated with downwelling mantle flows. The resulting tensional stress fields are shown to be regions of structural kinship characterized by major concentrations of ore deposits and related to the cordillera, shield and igneous systems and the upward Andean movements. It is suggested that the upwelling convection flows in the upper mantle, coupled with crustal tension, have provided an uplift mechanism which has forced the hydrothermal systems in the basement rocks to the surface.

Liu, H.-S.↗

Upstream surface roughness and terrain are strong drivers of contrast in tornado potential between North and South America

Central North America is the global hotspot for tornadoes, fueled by elevated terrain of the Rockies to the west and a source of warm, moist air from equatorward oceans. This conventional wisdom argues that central South America, with the Andes to the west and Amazon basin to the north, should have a “tornado alley” at least as active as central North America. Central South America has frequent severe thunderstorms yet relatively few tornadoes. Here, we show that conventional wisdom is missing an important ingredient specific to tornadoes: a smooth, flat ocean-like upstream surface. Using global climate model experiments, we show that central South American tornado potential substantially increases if its equatorward land surface is smoothed and flattened to be ocean-like. Similarly, we show that central North American tornado potential substantially decreases if its equatorward ocean surface is roughened to values comparable to forested land. A rough upstream surface suppresses the formation of tornadic environments principally by weakening the poleward low-level winds, characterized by a weakened low-level jet east of the mountain range. Results are shown to be robust for any midlatitude landmass using idealized experiments with a simplified continent and mountain range. Our findings indicate that large-scale upstream surface roughness is likely a first-order driver of the strong contrast in tornado potential between North and South America.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Influence of the Indian Ocean Dipole on the large-scale circulation in South America

The influence of each phase of the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) on the largescale circulation in South America is investigated using rainfall observations, fully-coupled, large-ensemble, historical simulations (LENS), and forced experiments using the coupled model’s atmospheric component. IOD events often occur when El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the largest source of interannual variability of precipitation in South America, is active. To distinguish from effects of ENSO, only cases during neutral ENSO conditions are analyzed in LENS and observations. During the positive IOD polarity, a perturbation in the localWalker circulation leads to increased convection over equatorial South America, resulting in wet anomalies in the Amazon basin. This signal is the opposite of what is expected during El Niño events. Tropical convection anomalies in the Indian Ocean also force an extratropical Rossby wave train that reaches subtropical South America. During positive IOD, the moisture flux from the Amazon to central and southeastern Brazil weakens, resulting in a drying of the area associated with the South Atlantic Convergence Zone. Meanwhile, the South Atlantic Subtropical High strengthens, contributing to a drying in southeastern Brazil. During negative IOD, the induced wave train from the Indian Ocean leads to increased moisture transport to the La Plata basin, leading to wet anomalies in the region.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Assessment of CMIP6 Performance and Projected Temperature and Precipitation Changes Over South America

We evaluate the performance of a large ensemble of Global Climate Models (GCMs) from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) over South America for a recent past reference period and examine their projections of twenty-first century precipitation and temperature changes. The future changes are computed for two time slices (2040–2059 and 2080–2099) relative to the reference period (1995–2014) under four Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs, SSP1–2.6, SSP2–4.5, SSP3–7.0 and SSP5–8.5). The CMIP6 GCMs successfully capture the main climate characteristics across South America. However, they exhibit varying skill in the spatiotemporal distribution of precipitation and temperature at the sub-regional scale, particularly over high latitudes and altitudes. Future precipitation exhibits a decrease over the east of the northern Andes in tropical South America and the southern Andes in Chile and Amazonia, and an increase over southeastern South America and the northern Andes—a result generally consistent with earlier CMIP (3 and 5) projections. However, most of these changes remain within the range of variability of the reference period. In contrast, temperature increases are robust in terms of magnitude even under the SSP1–2.6. Future changes mostly progress monotonically from the weakest to the strongest forcing scenario, and from the mid-century to late-century projection period. There is an increase in the seasonality of the intra-annual precipitation distribution, as the wetter part of the year contributes relatively more to the annual total. Furthermore, an increasingly heavy-tailed precipitation distribution and a rightward shifted temperature distribution provide strong indications of a more intense hydrological cycle as greenhouse gas emissions increase. The relative distance of an individual GCM from the ensemble mean does not substantially vary across different scenarios. We found no clear systematic linkage between model spread about the mean in the reference period and the magnitude of simulated sub-regional climate change in the future period. Overall, these results could be useful for regional climate change impact assessments across South America.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Forecasting Fire Season Severity in South America Using Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies

Fires in South America cause forest degradation and contribute to carbon emissions associated with land use change. We investigated the relationship between year-to-year changes in fire activity in South America and sea surface temperatures. We found that the Oceanic Ni o Index was correlated with interannual fire activity in the eastern Amazon, whereas the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation index was more closely linked with fires in the southern and southwestern Amazon. Combining these two climate indices, we developed an empirical model to forecast regional fire season severity with lead times of 3 to 5 months. Our approach may contribute to the development of an early warning system for anticipating the vulnerability of Amazon forests to fires, thus enabling more effective management with benefits for climate and air quality.

Chen, Yang↗

Predicting Fire Season Severity in South America Using Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies

Fires in South America cause forest degradation and contribute to carbon emissions associated with land use change. Here we investigated the relationship between year-to-year changes in satellite-derived estimates of fire activity in South America and sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies. We found that the Oceanic Ni o Index (ONI) was correlated with interannual fire activity in the eastern Amazon whereas the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) index was more closely linked with fires in the southern and southwestern Amazon. Combining these two climate indices, we developed an empirical model that predicted regional annual fire season severity (FSS) with 3-5 month lead times. Our approach provides the foundation for an early warning system for forecasting the vulnerability of Amazon forests to fires, thus enabling more effective management with benefits for mitigation of greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions.

Chen, Yang↗

Exploring sustainable electricity system development pathways in South America’s MERCOSUR sub-region

South America has abundant natural water and energy resources, and exploiting these resources to achieve a clean energy future is central to the continent’s economic and sustainable development objectives for the next several decades. Designing pathways to achieving this clean energy future requires better understanding the structural, techno-economic, and policy forces that may influence the future development of the electricity sector in the region. Here, we focus on an interconnected electricity system of five South American countries – Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay – which represent major electricity generation, consumption, and trade dynamics in the region. We explore the implications of various forces that could shape the future composition of the power sector in the sub-region, including: evolving renewable energy cost and performance, natural gas prices, cross-border interconnection facilities, early retirement of installed hydropower, and different decarbonization goals. We use a model framework based on a power system planning platform (GridPath) to co-optimize investment and operations of generation, storage, and transmission facilities out to 2050. Our results in a Reference scenario indicate that the electricity system can maintain a relatively clean energy portfolio by leveraging existing hydropower capacity and integrating increasingly cost-competitive wind and solar power. However, dependence on natural gas in the region is likely to remain high. A low-carbon electricity system can cost-effectively be achieved through policy interventions (e.g., renewable portfolio standards) and by diversifying investments in wind, solar, battery storage, and some new hydropower capacity. We also find that existing hydropower is critical for maintaining reliable future grid operations. Enhanced regional electricity trade, mostly based on existing interconnection capacities with nominal investment in new transmission, can significantly benefit the clean energy transition in the region.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Evidence of an Intrinsic Intraseasonal Oscillation over Tropical South America During Austral Summer

The intraseasonal variation (ISV) in the 30-60 day band, also known as Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO), has been studied for decades. Madden and Julian showed that the oscillation originated from the western Indian Ocean, propagated eastward, got enhanced over the maritime continent and weakened after passing over the dateline. Composite studies showed evidences of a signal in upper and lower level zonal wind propagating around the globe during an oscillation. Theoretical studies pointed out that the interaction with the warm ocean surface and the coupling with the convective and radiative processes in the atmosphere could manifest the oscillation, which propagates eastward via mutual feedbacks between the wave motions and the cumulus heating. Over tropical South America, no independent 30-60 day oscillation has been reported so far, despite that Amazon is the most distinct tropical convection center over the western hemisphere and the fluxes from its surface of tropical rainforests are close to that from the warm tropical ocean. Liebmann et al. showed a distinct spectral peak of 40-50 day oscillation in outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) over tropical South America and considered that was manifested by the MJO propagation. Nogues-Paegle et al. (2000) focused on a dipole pattern of the OLR anomaly with centers of action over the South Atlantic Convergence Zone (SACZ) and the subtropical plain. They used the regional 10-90 day filtered data and demonstrated this pattern could be represented by the fifth mode of the rotated empirical orthogonal function. Its principal component was further analyzed using the singular spectrum analysis. Their result showed two oscillatory modes with periods of 36-40 days and 22-28 days, of which the former was related to the MJO influence and the latter linked to the remote forcing over southwest of Australia, which produced a wave train propagating southeastward, rounding the southern tip of South America and returning back toward the northeast. The 22-28 day mode has distinct impact on SACZ, responsible for the regional seesaw pattern of alternating dry and wet conditions. In this study we will focus on the 30-60-day spectral band and investigate whether the independent oscillation source over tropical South America is existed. First, we will show the seasonal dependence of the tropical South American ISV in Section 3. Then, the leading principal modes of 30-60 day bandpass filtered 850-hPa velocity potential (VP850) will be computed to distinguish the stationary ISV over tropical South America (SISA) from the propagating MJO in the austral summertime in Section 4. The importance of SISA in representing the regional ISV over South America will be discussed. In Section 5, we will demonstrate the mass oscillation regime of SISA, which is well separated from that of MJO by the Andes, and the convective coupling with rainfall. The dynamical response of SISA and the impact on the South American summer monsoon (SASM) will be presented. Finally, we will give the concluding remarks.

Zhou, Jiayu↗

Relation of MAGSAT and Gravity Anomalies to the Main Tectonic Provinces of South America

Magnetic anomalies of the South American continent are generally more positive and variable than the oceanic anomalies. There is better correlation between the magnetic anomalies and the major tectonic elements of the continents than between the anomalies and the main tectonic elements of the adjacent oceanic areas. Oceanic areas generally show no direct correlation to the magnetic anomalies. Precambrian continental shields are mainly more magnetic than continental basins and orogenic belts. Shields differ markedly from major aulacogens which are generally characterized by negative magnetic anomalies and positive gravity anomalies. The Andean orogenic belt shows rather poor correlation with the magnetic anomalies. The magnetic data exhibit instead prominent east-west trends, which although consistent with some tectonic features, may be related to processing noise derived from data reduction procedures to correct for external magnetic field effects. The pattern over the Andes is sufficiently distinct from the generally north trending magnetic anomalies occurring in the adjacent Pacific Ocean to separate effectively the leading edge of the South American Plate from the Nazea Plate. Eastern South America is characterized by magnetic anomalies which commonly extend across the continental margin into the Atlantic Ocean.

Yuan, D. W.↗

An ecological niche model to predict the geographic distribution of Haemagogus janthinomys, Dyar, 1921 a yellow fever and Mayaro virus vector, in South America

Yellow fever virus (YFV) has a long history of impacting human health in South America. Mayaro virus (MAYV) is an emerging arbovirus of public health concern in the Neotropics and its full impact is yet unknown. Both YFV and MAYV are primarily maintained via a sylvatic transmission cycle but can be opportunistically transmitted to humans by the bites of infected forest dwelling Haemagogus janthinomys Dyar, 1921. To better understand the potential risk of YFV and MAYV transmission to humans, a more detailed understanding of this vector species’ distribution is critical. This study compiled a comprehensive database of 177 unique Hg . janthinomys collection sites retrieved from the published literature, digitized museum specimens and publicly accessible mosquito surveillance data. Covariate analysis was performed to optimize a selection of environmental (topographic and bioclimatic) variables associated with predicting habitat suitability, and species distributions modelled across South America using a maximum entropy (MaxEnt) approach. Our results indicate that suitable habitat for Hg . janthinomys can be found across forested regions of South America including the Atlantic forests and interior Amazon.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

The Amazon and La Plata River Basins as Moisture Sources of South America: Climatology and Intraseasonal Variability

Abstract Land‐atmosphere interactions are critical for precipitation (PPT) over South America where terrestrial evapotranspiration (ET) constitutes a significant fraction of moisture for rainfall over the ecologically and socio‐economically vital Amazon (AMZ) and La Plata (LPB) river basins. We quantify the contribution of ET from AMZ and LPB to PPT over the continent with a focus on the intraseasonal time scale. Using numerical water tracers embedded in the Weather Research and Forecasting model we track the moisture originating from the two basins. Our findings indicate that approximately 40% of annual rainfall over the eastern foothills of the Andes originates as AMZ ET, and nearly 30% of rainfall over northern Argentina originates as LPB ET. Analysis of moisture transport during both phases of the dominant intraseasonal oscillation pattern over South America reveals an intraseasonal “sloshing” of LPB moisture between the South Atlantic convergence zone (SACZ) and southeastern South America (SESA) regions. AMZ and LPB each supply approximately 6% of moisture for SACZ PPT during periods of intraseasonal enhancement (positive anomalies), highlighting the importance of moisture from the Atlantic Ocean. For the SESA region, LPB supplies 26% of the moisture for PPT during periods of intraseasonal enhancement while AMZ supplies 5%.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗