A search for five month solar induced periodicity in the stratosphere

Recent studies of solar UV spectra and various indices of solar activity indicate a strong period at about 5 months. In the 10.7 cm solar radio flux (F10.7), a conventional index for the solar EUV and UV variabilities, the spectral power of the 5 month period is comparable to the well known 27 day solar period. However, in the solar UV flux at 205 nm, directly measured from the Nimbus‐7 SBUV spectrometer, the (spectral) power of the 5 month period is about half that of the 27 day period. This paper examines the possible impact of the 5 month solar period on ozone and temperature at various pressure levels in the stratosphere and discusses the implications of differences in solar forcing at the 27 day and 5 month periods. It is shown that ozone, both in the lower and the upper stratosphere, has a measurable response to solar UV forcing at 27 days. Such a solar response is not observed at 5 month period because of a relatively weaker 5 month solar UV component in the solar signal and a strong interference from dynamical signals associated with planetary wave activity.