\u201cThe average global cloudiness doesn’t tend to change too much year-to-year, but the global distribution of cloudiness can vary quite a bit,\u201d noted Mike Foster, CIMSS researcher and the lead author on the global cloudiness section of the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That distribution can lead to unique and severe impacts across the globe, as it did in Australia in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In general, the distribution of clouds across the globe are often impacted by changes in circulation patterns such as the El Ni\u00f1o\u2013Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which affects winds and sea surface temperatures in and near the tropics through El Ni\u00f1o and La Ni\u00f1a. Foster explained that in 2019 ENSO was less of a factor than another similar pattern known as the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), which alters sea surface temperatures in the Indian Ocean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen the IOD is in a positive phase, eastern Africa tends to be more cloudy and Australia is less cloudy, compared to average. The positive IOD in 2019 was one of the strongest events seen in decades, and it led to some very dry conditions in Australia that contributed to the massively destructive wildfires,\u201d stated Foster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Long-term studies of clouds with highly accurate measurements are critical to monitoring their trends and impacts on the climate. Foster mentioned how small changes in any number of cloud parameters\u2013coverage, thickness, cloud height\u2013can have a dramatic effect. Understanding these impacts remains key in their research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn fact, the treatment of clouds, and specifically cloud feedbacks, is the largest source of deviation among climate models for future climate scenarios,\u201d stated Foster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n State of the Climate<\/em> is published by the AMS as a special supplement to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (BAMS).<\/em> This year marks the 30th<\/sup> such report. Assisted by CIMSS, ASPB, and other colleagues, Foster has been contributing updates on global cloudiness to the report since 2008.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ssec.wisc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2020\/09\/2019_multi_cf_annual_anomaly_timeseries.jpg\")