Impact of climate anomalies on instability and predictability of weather systems

This thesis aims to improve our understanding of the changes Australian temperatures and rainfall have undergone since the mid-20th Century. Multi-scale interaction of coupled ocean and atmospheric systems cascading down from planetary to synoptic scale weather instability modes and the effect their complex relationship has with regional rainfall is investigated. Research includes climate anomalies of large-scale teleconnection patterns, the changes in the Southern Hemisphere subtropical jet and the associated fronts, highs and cyclonic storms. The characteristics of the El Niño – Southern Oscillation from coupled climate models and the seasonal ensemble prediction of El Niño and La Niña events is examined.