The tropical tropopause and the El Niño of 1982–1983

An earlier study of the behavior of the tropical tropopause during 1982 is extended through 1984. The earlier study focused on the influence of the El Chichón volcanic eruption, but it also considered the influence of the 1982–1983 El Niño event during its onset phase in the latter half of 1982. Here we present anomalies of tropopause height, tropopause potential temperature, and lower stratospheric potential temperature through 1984. These anomalies clearly show a much warmer than normal tropopause potential temperature over the western tropical Pacific, associated with El Niño. The abnormally warm tropopause potential temperature, which was evident in late 1982, reaches a peak in early 1983 and continues abnormally warm until about October 1983. During this period the tropopause is also abnormally high, but the lower stratospheric potential temperature is near normal.