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Hurrell's North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) Index from NCAR
Entry ID: NCAR_NAO

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Summary

Abstract: The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is based on the difference of
normalized sea level pressure (SLP) between Lisbon, Portugal or Ponta
Delgada, Azores and Stykkisholmur/Reykjavik, Iceland since 1864. The
SLP anomalies at each station were normalized by division of each
seasonal pressure by the long-term (1864--1983) standard
deviation. The station data were obtained from the World Monthly
Surface Station Climatology: http://dss.ucar.edu/datasets/ds570.0/

Station data includes:
Extended Winter (Dec - Mar) index of the NAO based on the difference of
normalized sea level pressure (SLP) between Lisbon, Portugal and
Stykkisholmur/Reykjavik, Iceland since 1864.

Seasonal (DJF,MAM,JJA,SON) indices of the NAO are based on the
difference of normalized sea level pressure (SLP) between Ponta
Delgada, Azores and Stykkisholmur/Reykjavik, Iceland since 1864.

Annual: The annual index of the NAO is based on the difference of
normalized sea level pressure (SLP) between Ponta Delgada, Azores and
Stykkisholmur/Reykjavik, Iceland since 1864.

The values in the above table differ slightly from those in Hurrell
(1995) because of continual updates to the data and a change in the
base period. The SLP anomalies at each station were normalized
relative to the 120-year period 1864--1983. Hurrell (1995) normalized
relative to 1864--1994.

Related URL

Link: GET DATA
Description: Monthly and Seasonal NAO data from station-based indices

Link: VIEW RELATED INFORMATION
Description: The NAO Thematic Web Site

Geographic Coverage

N: 64.0 S: 38.0 E: -9.0 W: -22.0

Data Set Citation

Dataset Originator/Creator: Hurrell, J.W.
Dataset Title: Decadal trends in the North Atlantic Oscillation: Regional temperatures and precipitation
Dataset Series Name: Science
Dataset Release Date: 1995
Dataset Publisher: AAAS
Issue Identification: 269
Online Resource: http://www.cgd.ucar.edu/cas/jhurrell/

Temporal Coverage

Start Date: 1864-01-01

Location Keywords

OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN
OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN
OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > AZORES
CONTINENT > EUROPE > NORTHERN EUROPE > ICELAND
CONTINENT > EUROPE > WESTERN EUROPE > PORTUGAL

Data Resolution
Temporal Resolution: Annual, Seasonal

Science Keywords

ATMOSPHERE >ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE >DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE    [Definition]

ATMOSPHERE >ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE >OSCILLATIONS    [Definition]

ATMOSPHERE >ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE >PRESSURE ANOMALIES    [Definition]

ATMOSPHERE >ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE >SEA LEVEL PRESSURE    [Definition]

CLIMATE INDICATORS >ATMOSPHERIC/OCEAN INDICATORS >TELECONNECTIONS >NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION >NAO    [Definition]

ISO Topic Category

CLIMATOLOGY/METEOROLOGY/ATMOSPHERE

Platform

GROUND STATIONS [Information]

Project

ESIP >Earth Science Information Partners Program [Information]

Keywords

CLIMATE INDEX

CLIMATE INDICES

CLIMATOLOGY

NAO

SLP

NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION

Data Set Progress

IN WORK

Originating Center

NCAR

Data Center

Climate and Global Dynamics Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research [Information]
Data Center URL: http://www.cgd.ucar.edu/

Data Center Personnel

Name: CLIMATE AND GLOBAL DYNAMICS DIVISION
Phone: 303.497.1740
Email: cwimert at cgd.ucar.edu
Contact Address:
National Center for Atmospheric Research
P.O. Box 3000
City: Boulder
Province or State: CO
Postal Code: 80307-3000
Country: USA

Distribution

Distribution_Media: online
Distribution_Format: ASCII
Fees: None

Personnel

JAMES W. HURRELL
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Email: jhurrell at ucar.edu

SCOTT A. RITZ
Role: DIF AUTHOR
Phone: 301-614-5126
Fax: 301-614-5268
Email: Scott.A.Ritz at nasa.gov
Contact Address:
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Global Change Master Directory
City: Greenbelt
Province or State: Maryland
Postal Code: 20771
Country: USA

Publications/References

J.W. Hurrell, Y. Kushnir, G. Ottersen, and M. Visbeck (2003), The North Atlantic Oscillation: Climate Significance and Environmental Impact, Eds. Geophysical Monograph Series, 134, 279

Hurrell, J. W. (1995), Decadal trends in the North Atlantic Oscillation: Regional temperatures and precipitation, Science, 269, 676-679

Hurrell, J. W. (1996), Influence of variations in extratropical wintertime teleconnections on Northern Hemisphere temperatures, Geophys. Res. Lett., 23, 665-668, For a list of published papers, papers in press and white papers, see:
http://www.cgd.ucar.edu/cas/jhurrell/

Creation and Review Dates

Last DIF Revision Date: 2011-04-06

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