Intra‐annual relationships between polar ozone and the SAM

Observed co‐variations between polar total column ozone and the Southern Hemisphere Annular Mode (SAM) during 1962–2004 are presented and evaluated in a chemistry‐climate model (CCM). Results show that austral spring total column ozone variability at South Pole is significantly related to the SAM, perhaps up to four months later; this relationship is only seen in simulations that include ozone depletion. The austral spring SAM also is linked to following late spring – early summer total column ozone over the polar cap, since both respond to the wave‐driving of the stratosphere. Overall, the CCM captures many of the observed ozone‐SAM links, but over‐predicts the relationship between spring ozone and austral summer SAM, as a consequence of the delayed breakdown of the polar vortex in the CCM.