IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jjopen/v3y2020i1p7-78d321038.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Relationship between Sunspot Numbers and Mean Annual Precipitation: Application of Cross-Wavelet Transform—A Case Study

Author

Listed:
  • Mohammad Nazari-Sharabian

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA)

  • Moses Karakouzian

    (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA)

Abstract

Observations show that the Sun, which is the primary source of energy for the Earth’s climate system, is a variable star. In order to understand the influence of solar variability on the Earth’s climate, knowledge of solar variability and solar–terrestrial interactions is required. Knowledge of the Sun’s cyclic behavior can be used for future prediction purposes on Earth. In this study, the possible connection between sunspot numbers (SSN) as a proxy for the 11-year solar cycle and mean annual precipitation (MAP) in Iran were investigated, with the motivation of contributing to the controversial issue of the relationship between SSN and MAP. Nine locations throughout Iran were selected, representing different climatic conditions in the country. Cross-wavelet transform (XWT) analysis was employed to investigate the temporal relationship between cyclicities in SSN and MAP. Results indicated that a distinct 8–12-year correlation exists between the two time series of SSN and MAP, and peaks in precipitation mostly occur one to three years after the SSN maxima. The findings of this study can be beneficial for policymakers, to consider future potential droughts and wet years based on sunspot activities, so that water resources can be more properly managed.

Suggested Citation

  • Mohammad Nazari-Sharabian & Moses Karakouzian, 2020. "Relationship between Sunspot Numbers and Mean Annual Precipitation: Application of Cross-Wavelet Transform—A Case Study," J, MDPI, vol. 3(1), pages 1-12, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jjopen:v:3:y:2020:i:1:p:7-78:d:321038
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8800/3/1/7/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8800/3/1/7/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Linyao Dong & Congsheng Fu & Jigen Liu & Pingcang Zhang, 2018. "Combined Effects of Solar Activity and El Niño on Hydrologic Patterns in the Yoshino River Basin, Japan," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 32(7), pages 2421-2435, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Linghui Guo & Yuanyuan Luo & Yao Li & Tianping Wang & Jiangbo Gao & Hebing Zhang & Youfeng Zou & Shaohong Wu, 2023. "Spatiotemporal Changes and the Prediction of Drought Characteristics in a Major Grain-Producing Area of China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-19, November.
    2. Jie Tao & Wenzhao Qiao & Hang Li & Xiaoning Qu & Rong Gan, 2022. "Spatial and temporal evolution characteristics and causes of drought and flood in the Henan section of the Yellow River," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 113(2), pages 997-1016, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jjopen:v:3:y:2020:i:1:p:7-78:d:321038. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.