Potential non-linearities in the high latitude circulation and ozone response to Stratospheric Aerosol Injection | CU Experts

The impacts of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) on the atmosphere; and surface climate depend on when and where the sulfate aerosol; precursors are injected, as well as on how much surface cooling is to be; achieved. We use a set of CESM2(WACCM6) SAI simulations achieving three; different levels of global mean surface cooling and demonstrate that; unlike some direct surface climate impacts driven by the reflection of; solar radiation by sulfate aerosols, the SAI-induced changes in the high; latitude circulation and ozone are more complex and could be non-linear.; This manifests in our simulations by disproportionally larger Antarctic; springtime ozone loss, significantly larger intra-ensemble spread of the; Arctic stratospheric jet and ozone responses, and non-linear impacts on; the extratropical modes of surface climate variability under the; strongest-cooling SAI scenario compared to the weakest one. These; potential non-linearities may add to uncertainties in projections of; regional surface impacts under SAI.

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