DOUBLE EFFECT ON CLIMATE

An international study has shown that droughts in the Sahel region on the southern Sahara rim can be affected by cyclical changes in atmospheric pressure and sea surface temperature in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Researchers from Columbia University, the University of Haifa, the University of San Diego, and the French National Meteorology Service studied how climate variability in one location can affect another distant location, and more importantly, were able to locate these "far-connections" and "understand their projections."

The study analyzed a number of climate parameters in the North Atlantic, which included sea surface temperature and atmospheric pressure at sea level.

According to Dr. Shlomit Paz, a co-author in the study who works for the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of Haifa, the latest research is an important addition to what science already knows about climatic models, and is "improving their prediction capability."

"Today we are able to gain a better understanding of how the oceans play an important role in the Earth's 'climate memory,'" said Paz. "Once we become familiar with the natural signals, we will be able to better understand how the human factor correlates with climate."