The southern African easterly jet (AEJ-S) is an important midtropospheric feature critical to understanding the tropical convective system over central Africa and the aerosol–cloud interactions over the southeast Atlantic Ocean. However, it remains unclear how well models represent the AEJ-S and its influence on aerosol transport, clouds, and precipitation distribution. Here, we use ground- and satellite-based observations and reanalysis datasets to assess the representation of AEJ-S in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6) models between September and October during the peak of midtropospheric winds, aerosol transport, clouds, and precipitation. We find that most CMIP6 models have difficulty accurately simulating the strength, position, and spatial distribution of the AEJ-S. Specifically, the AEJ-S is relatively weaker and at a slightly lower altitude in the ensemble of CMIP6 models than represented by observation and reanalysis datasets. To assess the influence of the misrepresented the AEJ-S on CMIP6-simulated aerosol, clouds, and precipitation distributions, we performed composite analyses using models with low and high biases based on the estimates of their midtropospheric easterly wind speed. We find that the misrepresentation of the AEJ-S in CMIP6 models is associated with the overestimation of clouds and precipitation over central Africa, the underestimation of clouds over the southeast Atlantic Ocean, and the limitation of aerosol transport over the continent or the deviation of its spatial distribution from the typical zonal transport over the Atlantic Ocean. Because aerosols, clouds, and precipitation are important components of the regional climate system, we conclude that accurate representation of the AEJ-S is essential over central Africa and the southeast Atlantic Ocean.

Climate change-induced sea level rise, shoreline changes, and coastal erosion are projected to drive massive population displacement and mobility in Africa. This study was conducted to examine the pattern of shoreline changes, coastal erosion, land use/land cover dynamics, projections, and their implications on internal migration in Senegal, Kenya, and Tanzania, representing West and East Africa. The digitized shoreline was mapped into erosion, accretion, and trend analysis, which further explains the vulnerability and physical processes that could trigger human displacement within the context of environmental/climate migration. Analysis of land use and land cover dynamics was obtained from Landsat 5 TM of 1986, Landsat 7 ET of 2006, Landsat 8 OLI/TIRS of 2016, and Landsat 9 OLI/TIRS of 2022 and computed using ArcGIS 10.7 for land-use change and percentage change in square kilometers was conducted to examine land use/land cover dynamics and their contributions to the risk of coastal erosion in the study regions. The outcome of the shoreline analysis reveals that 972.03 sqkm of land has been lost to coastal erosion in Senegal from 1986 to 2022 with 2016–2022 described as the period with the highest in terms of land loss. In Kenya, −463.30 sqkm of land has also been lost to coastal erosion and agents of wave processes, with 1986–2006 recording the highest share of −87.74% loss of valuable land, while in Tanzania, −1033.35 sqkm of valuable land has been lost from 1986 to 2022 to coastal erosion, with 2006–2016 alone recording −10.4634% of land loss. The result of the land use/land cover percentage change analysis indicates a massive loss of vegetation cover with a significant increase in settlement representing urbanization. The scenario analysis of the shoreline at 10, 20, and 30 m indicates that 567 persons per sqkm at 10 m, 25,904.6 persons per sqkm at 20 m, and 25,904.5 persons per sqkm will be displaced in Senegal at 30 m. In Kenya, 57,746 persons per sqkm are projected to be displaced at 10 m while 1210.5 persons per sqkm will be displaced at 20 m and 7737.32 persons per sqkm will be displaced at 30 m. In Tanzania, the maximum population density projected to be displaced at 10, 20, and 30 m is 10,260.97 per sqkm. Structured questionnaires were administered to elicit responses from coastal dwellers on their perception of coastal erosion and climate migration as part of ground truthing and the result of the survey affirms that coastal erosion and its exposure are the major drivers of climate migration in the study area.

The impact of aerosols produced by biomass burning on the stratocumulus‐to‐cumulus transition (SCT) in the equatorial Atlantic is studied using satellite‐based and reanalysis data for the month of June. The month of June is highlighted because it represents monsoon onset as well as the largest sea surface temperature gradient in the summer, which is the peak season of tropical African biomass burning. Boundary layer deepening and increasing temperatures put the location of the SCT within the Gulf of Guinea. Satellite retrievals indicate that the bulk of aerosols occur near 1,500 m in altitude, either above or below the boundary layer depending on latitudinal position. Changes in smoke loading over the Gulf of Guinea due to greater transport from southern Africa leads to increases in low‐level cloud cover above cloud decks and decreases when mixed within the boundary layer. Further south, we find significant changes to temperature, cloud top height, tropospheric stability and moisture availability near maximum aerosol loading. In addition, changes in vertical velocity during dirty conditions further reinforce changes in tropospheric stability. These effects combine to shorten the SCT in space during increased aerosol loading episodes.

Improved understanding of hydroclimatic drivers in water-stressed regions enables more accurate forecasting of future climate change impacts. Lake Bonneville was the largest Pleistocene lake in western North America, with a maximum surface area of ~52,000 km ² , before shrinking markedly to become the modern Great Salt Lake. After more than a century of study, the balance between enhanced precipitation and reduced evaporation as drivers of lake growth continues to be debated. Multiple studies identify precipitation as the main factor associated with the highest lake levels, but most proxies provide an estimate of net evaporation and cannot independently resolve precipitation from evaporation. Therefore, factors associated with lake size, growth, and retreat remain uncertain. This study uses the thermodynamically based carbonate clumped isotope geothermometer to estimate temperature, evaporation, and precipitation at Lake Bonneville from 23 to 16 thousand years ago (ka). Clumped isotope derived constraints on hydroclimate are also applied to assess the accuracy of regional climate model outputs. During transgressive and open phases of the lake, we find that regional and large-scale precipitation delivery were the driving factors of lake expansion. In contrast, at its maximum extent (~17.5 ka), Lake Bonneville was maintained via suppressed evaporation rates at 50% relative to modern while precipitation rates were similar to modern levels.

Since the last glacial period, North America has experienced dramatic changes in regional climate, including the collapse of ice sheets and changes in precipitation. We use clumped isotope (∆₄₇) thermometry and carbonate δ¹⁸O measurements of glacial and deglacial pedogenic carbonates from the Palouse Loess to provide constraints on hydroclimate changes in the Pacific Northwest. We also employ analysis of climate model simulations to help us further provide constraints on the hydroclimate changes in the Pacific Northwest. The coldest clumped isotope soil temperatures T(₄₇) (13.5 ± 1.9°C to 17.1 ± 1.7°C) occurred ∼34,000–23,000 years ago. Using a soil‐to‐air temperature transfer function, we estimate Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) mean annual air temperatures of ∼−5.5°C and warmest average monthly temperatures (i.e., mean summer air temperatures) of ∼4.4°C. These data indicate a regional warming of 16.4 ± 2.6°C from the LGM to the modern temperatures of 10.9°C, which was about 2.5–3 times the global average. Proxy data provide locality constraints on the boundary of the cooler anticyclone induced by LGM ice sheets, and the warmer cyclone in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Climate model analysis suggests regional amplification of temperature anomalies is due to the proximal location of the study area to the Laurentide Ice Sheet margin and the impact of the glacial anticyclone on the region, as well as local albedo. Isotope‐enabled model experiments indicate variations in water δ¹⁸O largely reflect atmospheric circulation changes and enhanced rainout upstream that brings more depleted vapor to the region during the LGM.