Intraseasonal variability of wind waves in the western South Atlantic: the role of cyclones and the Pacific South-American pattern

Abstract. Extratropical cyclones are known to generate extreme significant wave height (swh) values in the western South Atlantic (wSA), which are highly influenced by intraseasonal scales. This work aims to investigate the importance of intraseasonal time scales (30–180 days) in the regional wave climate and its atmospheric forcing. The variability is explained by analyzing the storm track modulation due to westerlies winds. These winds present time-scales and spatial patterns compatible with the intraseasonal component of the Pacific South–American (PSA) patterns. The analysis are made using ECMWF’s ERA5 from 1979 to 2019 and a database of extratropical cyclones based on the same reanalysis. Empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of the 10 m zonal wind and swh are used to assess the westerlies and waves regime in the wSA. The EOF1 of u10 presented a core centred at 45° W and 40° S, while the EOF2 is represented by two cores organized into a see-saw pattern with a center between 30° S–40° S and another to the south of 40° S. Composites of cyclone genesis and track densities, and swh fields were calculated based on the phases of both EOFs. In short, EOF phases presenting cores with a positive (negative) u10 anomaly provides a favorable (unfavorable) environment for cyclone genesis and track densities and, therefore, positive (negative) swh anomalies. The modulation of the cyclones track are significant for extreme values of the swh. The spatial patterns of the EOFs of u10 are physically and statistically consistent with 200 hPa and 850 hPa geopotential height signals from the Pacific, indicating the importance of the remote influence of the PSA patterns over the wSA.