Editor's Summary

3 January 2008

Warming with altitude

Some of the most pronounced signs of climate change have been seen in the Arctic, for example, near-surface warming there has been almost twice the global average over the past few decades. The underlying causes of this 'Arctic amplification' remain uncertain, but examination of a temperature data set based on modelling and observations in the region during this period provides some clues. The key finding is evidence for atmospheric temperature amplification well above the surface. This is unlikely to be a due to reduced snow and ice cover during the greater part of the year, suggesting that factors such as changes in atmospheric heat transport may be involved in the recent Arctic warming.

Letter: Vertical structure of recent Arctic warming

Rune G. Graversen, Thorsten Mauritsen, Michael Tjernström, Erland Källén & Gunilla Svensson

doi:10.1038/nature06502

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