Satellite Exploration of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (SEQUOIA)

One of the most unusual processes in the atmosphere is the quasi-biennial oscillation, or QBO. This is a pattern of winds in the tropics which repeats every two to three years, and affects weather and climate from pole to pole. However, the QBO is extremely hard to reproduce in atmospheric models, due to both limited model resolution and to limited information about the small-scale atmospheric waves which drive it. SEQUOIA will use new techniques to measure these waves in observations and models. We will then implement our knowledge gains into HadGEM, a leading climate model. This combination of observational and model approaches will lay the groundwork needed for the next generation of high-resolution models to accurately reproduce the QBO. This in turn will impact upon weather and climate forecasting, particularly at the seasonal and longer timescales which are the most challenging to predict.