Multiyear Variation of Temperature and Precipitation in the Coastal States of the Southeastern United States

Multiyear variation of temperature and precipitation in the coastal states of the southeastern United States is investigated for the period 1885 to 1999. The major conclusions of this study are that: (1) with the exception of a significant decrease in summer precipitation there has been little overall change in the values of temperature and precipitation of the study area over the last century. The region is one of only two large areas in the world that have not manifested a warming trend; (2) the climate of the study area during the last century falls approximately into two specific climate periods. The period 1900-1950 had a relatively high annual, winter, and summer temperature, low annual and winter precipitation, and a small range of variation in annual and winter precipitation. The period 1951-1999 had low annual, winter and summer temperatures rising at the end of the period, relatively high annual and winter precipitation and low summer precipitation, and a relatively large range of variation in annual and winter precipitation; (3) multiyear climatic variability exists in the study area and the variability of temperature, in particular, is associated with the value of the North Atlantic Oscillation.