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Global / PNW Data Archive: Atmospheric Indices

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This page provides time series of large scale atmospheric and atmosphere-ocean phenomena, many of which can be related to climate variability in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). It includes:

Atmospheric Indices

Name Temporal
Resolution		 Range of Years Comments
El Niņo / Southern Oscillation (ENSO) indices
Equatorial Pacific SSTs: Nino1+2, Nino3, Nino4, Nino3.4 Weekly and Monthly 1950-present  
Niño 3.4 Monthly 1856-2000  
Eastern Eq. Pacific SST Anomalies
"Cold Tongue Index"		 Monthly 1845 - Sept. 2008
Southern Oscillation Index, Tahiti, and Darwin sea-level pressure anomalies Monthly 1854-present University of East Anglia
Marine-based Southern Oscillation Index Monthly 1887-1992  
Walker and Bliss Southern Oscillation index Seasonal and Monthly 1875-1933  
Quinn et al. El Niño index Annual 1525-1987  
Equatorial Pacific Precipitation Index Seasonal 1892-1989 4N-12S, 152.5E-82.5W
Other Indices
Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) Monthly 1900-present  
Northern Annular Mode (NAM) also known as the Arctic Oscillation (AO) Monthly 1899-2001
1948 - June 2008		  
Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) Monthly 1953 - present Free University of Berlin
Madden and Julian Osciilation (MJO)      
Maloney and Hartmann Daily 1979 to mid-2002  
Wheeler and Hendon Daily 1979 to present  
NCEP 5-day 1978 to present
Pacific/North American (PNA) indices      
Wallace and Gutzler grid-point definition Monthly 1948-Aug2008  
EOF-definition Monthly 1948-June2008  
North Pacific sea level pressure index (NPI) Monthly 1900-1992 Sea level pressure anomalies averaged poleward of 30°N, from 156°E-138°W.
The leading (EOF) mode of global SST variability Monthly 1900-1993 Zhang and Wallace

Hemispheric and Global Average Temperatures

Name Temporal
Resolution		 Range of Years Comments
Marine surface air temperature anomalies Monthly 1854-1997  
Global and hemispheric means for land+sea, land only, and sea only Monthly, Annual 1880-present National Climatic Data Center
Sea surface temperature anomalies Monthly 1845-Sep.2008  
Global and hemispheric means for land+sea, land only, and sea only Monthly 1850-present University of East Anglia

For Assistance

Contact Todd Mitchell ( mitchell@atmos.washington.edu, 206 685 3786).