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Costa Rica Climatology Play: Precipitation Variability and Interactions

Explore the complex atmospheric, oceanic, and topographic interactions impacting Costa Rica’s precipitation climatology and variability. Dive into the characters such as topography, oceans, trade winds, ENSO, and more in this climatological play.

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Costa Rica Climatology Play: Precipitation Variability and Interactions

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  1. Precipitation Climatology of Costa Rica and its Variability Atmospheric, Oceanic and Topographic Interactions

  2. Characters in The Play • Topography • Oceans • Northeast Trade Winds (aka Los Alisios) • Caribbean Low Level Jet (aka Veranillos de San Juan) • Inter-tropical Convergence Zone • Cold Fronts (aka Los Nortes) • ENSO (El Niño y La Niña)

  3. Act 1: November - April “Los Alisios”

  4. ~90°N HIGH LOW LOW ~45-60°N ~30°N HIGH HIGH HIGH Hadley Cell Northeast Trades LOW LOW LOW ~0° HIGH HIGH HIGH ~30°S ~45-60°S LOW Costa Rica ~ 8-11.5°N LOW HIGH ~90°S

  5. Mean Sea-level Pressure

  6. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE Northeast Trades Andes

  7. Average Surface Windspeeds and Directions (mph) (13.5) (18.0) (4.5) (9.0)

  8. Source: NASA

  9. Source: Instituto Merteorologico Nacional and Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad

  10. Act 2: May - October “ITCZ”

  11. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE Northeast Trades 3°N Andes ITCZ Feb Peru- Humboldt Current

  12. Mean Sea Surface Temperature

  13. Mean Sea Surface Temperature 28°C (82°F) 23°C (73°F)

  14. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE Northeast Trades ITCZ Feb 3°N Andes Cross- Equatorial Westerlies

  15. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE Northeast Trades ITCZ Sep 10°N Andes Cross-equatorial Westerlies

  16. Average Surface Windspeeds and Directions Equator

  17. Act 3: July - August “Veranillo de San Juan”

  18. VERANILLOS DE SAN JUAN OR CANICULA Mid-Summer Drought Average Latitude (°N) of ITCZ in Eastern Equatorial Pacific Month Hastenrath, 1991

  19. GAP IN CENTRAL AMERICAN CORDILLERA San Andrés or Caribbean Low Level Jet Cool Upwelling

  20. 80°W Caribbean Low Level Jet (CLLJ) DJF 1000hPa NCEP-NCAR RE-ANALYSIS Source: Kalnay et al., 1996 m/s

  21. SEASONAL STRENGTHS OF CLLJ Westerly Component of Wind Velocity at 80°W JJA MAM CLLJ Pressure (mm) ~Altitude SON Latitude Latitude DJF Source: NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis, Kalnay et al., 1996

  22. GAP IN CENTRAL AMERICAN CORDILLERA

  23. EVIDENCE OF VERANILLOS ? JUNE JULY Meso-Scale Convective Systems 1998 as detected by TRMM AUGUST SEPTEMBER Source: Mejia and Poveda 2003

  24. Act 4: November - April “Los Nortes”

  25. North America as Funnel of Cold Air in Boreal Winter Rockies etc. H H Appalachians Surges of Cold Air over Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean

  26. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE Cold Fronts Northeast Trades 3°N Andes ITCZ Feb

  27. Act 4: ENSO “El Niño y La Niña”

  28. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE EL NIŇO Northeast Trades 3°N Andes ITCZ Feb Peru- Humboldt Current 1. Warmer surface waters appear in Eastern Equatorial Pacific November onwards

  29. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE EL NIŇO Northeast Trades 2. ITCZ shifts south and west of normal position 3°N Andes ITCZ Feb Peru- Humboldt Current 1. Warmer surface waters appear in Eastern Equatorial Pacific November onwards

  30. STANDARD CLIMATOLOGICAL PICTURE EL NIŇO Northeast Trades 3 Northeast Trades intensify 2. ITCZ shifts south and west of normal position 3°N Andes ITCZ Feb Peru- Humboldt Current 1. Warmer surface waters appear in Eastern Equatorial Pacific November onwards

  31. Difference in Velocities (Warm – Cold Phase of ENSO) Positive = More Westerly (Less Easterly) Negative = More Easterly (Less Westerly) MAM Poveda et al., 2001 Spring: “In El Niño, trades weaker (less easterly) than in La Niña.”

  32. Difference in Velocities (Warm – Cold Phase of ENSO) Positive = More Westerly (Less Easterly) Negative = More Easterly (Less Westerly) JJA Poveda et al., 2001 Summer: “In El Niño, trades stronger (less westerly) than in La Niña.”

  33. Difference in Velocities (Warm – Cold Phase of ENSO) Positive = More Westerly (Less Easterly) Negative = More Easterly (Less Westerly) SON Poveda et al., 2001 Fall: “In El Niño, trades stronger (less westerly) than in La Niña, but not as marked as in summer.”

  34. Difference in Velocities (Warm – Cold Phase of ENSO) Positive = More Westerly (Less Easterly) Negative = More Easterly (Less Westerly) DJF Poveda et al., 2001 Winter: “In El Niño, trades much weaker (less easterly) than in La Niña.”

  35. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  36. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  37. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  38. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate ? Standard Deviations above/below mean

  39. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate ? Standard Deviations above/below mean

  40. Act 5: Epilogue “The Atlantic”

  41. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  42. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  43. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  44. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

  45. La Niña El Niño Seasonal Precipitation as a Normalized deviate Standard Deviations above/below mean

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