https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/21/8615/2021/

Differences in the quasi-biennial oscillation response to stratospheric
aerosol modification depending on injection strategy and species

Henning Franke <https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9527-2946>1,2, Ulrike Niemeier
<https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0088-8364>1, and Daniele Visioni
<https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7342-2189>3

   - 1Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Bundesstr. 53, 20146 Hamburg,
   Germany
   - 2International Max Planck Research School on Earth System Modelling,
   Bundesstr. 53, 20146 Hamburg, Germany
   - 3Sibley School for Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell
   University, Ithaca, NY, USA


*Abstract*

A known adverse side effect of stratospheric aerosol modification (SAM) is
the alteration of the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO), which is caused by
the stratospheric heating associated with an artificial aerosol layer.
Multiple studies found the QBO to slow down or even completely vanish for
point-like injections of SO2 at the Equator. The cause for this was found
to be a modification of the thermal wind balance and a stronger tropical
upwelling. For other injection strategies, different responses of the QBO
have been observed. A theory which is able to explain those differences in
a comprehensive manner has not yet been presented. This is further
complicated by the fact that the simulated QBO response is highly sensitive
to the used model even under identical boundary conditions. Therefore,
within this study we investigate the response of the QBO to SAM for three
different injection strategies (point-like injection at the Equator,
point-like injection at 30∘ N and 30∘ S simultaneously, and areal injection
into a 60∘ wide belt along the Equator). Our simulations confirm that the
QBO response significantly depends on the injection location. Based on the
thermal wind balance, we demonstrate that this dependency is explained by
differences in the meridional structure of the aerosol-induced
stratospheric warming, i.e., the location and meridional extension of the
maximum warming. Additionally, we also tested two different injection
species (SO2 and H2SO4). The QBO response is qualitatively similar for both
investigated injection species. Comparing the results to corresponding
results of a second model, we further demonstrate the generality of our
theory as well as the importance of an interactive treatment of
stratospheric ozone for the simulated QBO response.

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