Anthropogenic greenhouse forcing and strong water vapor feedback increase temperature in Europe

• Published in: Geophysical research letters Vol. 32; no. 19; pp. L19809 - n/a
• Main Authors: Philipona, Rolf, Dürr, Bruno, Ohmura, Atsumu, Ruckstuhl, Christian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Geophysical Union 01.10.2005; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Atmosphere; Atmospheric Composition and Structure; Climate variability; Evolution of the atmosphere; Global Change; Impacts of global change; Regional climate change; Europe
• ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
• DOI: 10.1029/2005GL023624

Europe's temperature increases considerably faster than the northern hemisphere average. Detailed month‐by‐month analyses show temperature and humidity changes for individual months that are similar for all Europe, indicating large‐scale weather patterns uniformly influencing temperature. However, superimposed to these changes a strong west‐east gradient is observed for all months. The gradual temperature and humidity increases from west to east are not related to circulation but must be due to non‐uniform water vapour feedback. Surface radiation measurements in central Europe manifest anthropogenic greenhouse forcing and strong water vapor feedback, enhancing the forcing and temperature rise by about a factor of three. Solar radiation decreases and changing cloud amounts show small net radiative effects. However, high correlation of increasing cloud‐free longwave downward radiation with temperature (r = 0.99) and absolute humidity (r = 0.89), and high correlation between ERA‐40 integrated water vapor and CRU surface temperature changes (r = 0.84), demonstrates greenhouse forcing with strong water vapor feedback.