Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
JOURNAL OF CLIMATE, cilt.7, sa.6, ss.965-976, 1994 (SCI-Expanded)
Streamflows in the Pacific Southwest of the United States in relation to the tropical Type I El Nino-Southern Oscillation (Tl ENSO) and La Nina events are examined using composite and harmonic analyses for each event during a 24-month evolution period. The hydroclimatic signals associated with either extreme phase of the Southern Oscillation (SO) are explored based on data from 50 streamflow stations in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah. A significant level for the results is assessed by the use of a hypergeometric distribution. Highly significant, coherent signals are demonstrated to exist for both events, with opposite sign and almost identical timing. Pacific Southwest streamflow responses to the Tl ENSO thermal forcing are characterized by a wet December-July season in the subsequent year of the event. Similarly, a dry February-July season is detected as a period at which the La Nina-streamflow relationship is strong and spatially coherent. An index time series is plotted to determine the temporal consistency of the signal. It was found that the respective seasonal signal for each event was confirmed by all episodes. Amplification (suppression) of the regional annual streamflow cycle is noticed during the subsequent year of the typical Tl ENSO (La Nina) event.