Patterns of Interannual Temperature Variability in Northwestern Canada

This research explored patterns of interannual temperature variability in Northwest Canada using wavelet, cross-wavelet and spectral analysis. 69 years of annual and seasonal temperature records from six meteorological stations in Northwestern Canada were used. It was found that there are differences in the interannual temperature variability between seasons in the regions, with most of the annual variability occurring in the winter. The majority of the interannual temperature variability was found to occur in the 2 to 5 year, and greater than 15 year bandwidths. It is hypothesized that these are mainly linked to El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) changes. It was determined that a significant 11-year cyclicity in winter temperatures from around 1950 to 1980 is positively correlated with solar cyclicity; this interval coincides with a low PDO stage with fewer and weaker ENSO events.