The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming

Abstract We examine daily surface air temperatures (SAT) in the Arctic under global warming, synthesizing changes in mean temperature, variability, seasonality, and extremes based on five Earth system model large ensembles from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6. Our analysis shows th...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Céline Giesse, Dirk Notz, Johanna Baehr
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-11-01
Series:Earth's Future
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EF004961
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850108293404426240
author Céline Giesse
Dirk Notz
Johanna Baehr
author_facet Céline Giesse
Dirk Notz
Johanna Baehr
author_sort Céline Giesse
collection DOAJ
description Abstract We examine daily surface air temperatures (SAT) in the Arctic under global warming, synthesizing changes in mean temperature, variability, seasonality, and extremes based on five Earth system model large ensembles from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6. Our analysis shows that the distribution of daily Arctic SAT changes substantially, with Arctic mean temperatures being distinguishable from pre‐industrial levels on 84% and 97% of days at 1.5 and 2°C of global warming, respectively, and on virtually every day at 3°C of global warming. This shift is primarily due to the rapid rise in average temperature resulting from Arctic amplification and is exacerbated by a decrease in the variability of daily Arctic SAT of approximately 8.5% per degree of global warming. The changes in mean temperature and variability are more pronounced in the cold seasons than in summer, resulting in a weakened and shifted seasonal cycle of Arctic SAT. Moreover, the intensity and frequency of warm and cold extreme events change to varying degrees. The hottest days warm slightly more, while the coldest days warm 4–5 times more than the global average temperature, making extreme cold events rare. Changes in local SAT vary regionally across the Arctic and are most significant in areas of sea‐ice loss. Our findings underscore the Arctic's amplified sensitivity to global warming and emphasize the urgent need to limit global warming to mitigate impacts on human and natural systems.
format Article
id doaj-art-44d27fba7dc74a958aff63ad4b47dfa1
institution OA Journals
issn 2328-4277
language English
publishDate 2024-11-01
publisher Wiley
record_format Article
series Earth's Future
spelling doaj-art-44d27fba7dc74a958aff63ad4b47dfa12025-08-20T02:38:24ZengWileyEarth's Future2328-42772024-11-011211n/an/a10.1029/2024EF004961The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global WarmingCéline Giesse0Dirk Notz1Johanna Baehr2Center for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN) Institute of Oceanography Universität Hamburg Hamburg GermanyCenter for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN) Institute of Oceanography Universität Hamburg Hamburg GermanyCenter for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN) Institute of Oceanography Universität Hamburg Hamburg GermanyAbstract We examine daily surface air temperatures (SAT) in the Arctic under global warming, synthesizing changes in mean temperature, variability, seasonality, and extremes based on five Earth system model large ensembles from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6. Our analysis shows that the distribution of daily Arctic SAT changes substantially, with Arctic mean temperatures being distinguishable from pre‐industrial levels on 84% and 97% of days at 1.5 and 2°C of global warming, respectively, and on virtually every day at 3°C of global warming. This shift is primarily due to the rapid rise in average temperature resulting from Arctic amplification and is exacerbated by a decrease in the variability of daily Arctic SAT of approximately 8.5% per degree of global warming. The changes in mean temperature and variability are more pronounced in the cold seasons than in summer, resulting in a weakened and shifted seasonal cycle of Arctic SAT. Moreover, the intensity and frequency of warm and cold extreme events change to varying degrees. The hottest days warm slightly more, while the coldest days warm 4–5 times more than the global average temperature, making extreme cold events rare. Changes in local SAT vary regionally across the Arctic and are most significant in areas of sea‐ice loss. Our findings underscore the Arctic's amplified sensitivity to global warming and emphasize the urgent need to limit global warming to mitigate impacts on human and natural systems.https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EF004961global warming levelslarge ensemblesArctic warmingArctic climate changeinternal variabilitysurface air temperature
spellingShingle Céline Giesse
Dirk Notz
Johanna Baehr
The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
Earth's Future
global warming levels
large ensembles
Arctic warming
Arctic climate change
internal variability
surface air temperature
title The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
title_full The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
title_fullStr The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
title_full_unstemmed The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
title_short The Shifting Distribution of Arctic Daily Temperatures Under Global Warming
title_sort shifting distribution of arctic daily temperatures under global warming
topic global warming levels
large ensembles
Arctic warming
Arctic climate change
internal variability
surface air temperature
url https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EF004961
work_keys_str_mv AT celinegiesse theshiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming
AT dirknotz theshiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming
AT johannabaehr theshiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming
AT celinegiesse shiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming
AT dirknotz shiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming
AT johannabaehr shiftingdistributionofarcticdailytemperaturesunderglobalwarming