The South Atlantic Subtropical Anticyclone (SASA) is the main feature of the atmospheric circulation over the South Atlantic Ocean, and its study is of great importance to explain many characteristics of the Brazilian weather and climate. Therefore, this study aims to present (1) a review of the literature on SASA including the drivers of the semi-permanent anticyclones and (2) the main features of the SASA in the future climate obtained through the projections of three global climate models (HadGEM2-ES, GFDL-ESM2M, and MPI-ESM-MR), from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5), using the Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 (RCP8.5) scenario. SASA is zonally wider in winter and retracted to the east in summer, when it presents a more circular format. These features of the SASA in the present climate (1979–2005) are well represented by the three global climate models, which also project this same SASA seasonal pattern for the future climate (2065–2095). Considering the projections, they indicate a slightly poleward expansion of the SASA, which is associated with the widening of the Hadley cell. At the SASA core, the pressure can be similar or slightly more intense than the present climate.

A América do Sul (AS) possui uma geografia diversificada, propícia ao desenvolvimento e atuação de diferentes sistemas atmosféricos que contribuem para não-homogeneidade espacial e temporal da precipitação. Diante disso, os objetivos deste estudo são: (a) discutir os conceitos básicos de tempo e clima, (b) apresentar a climatologia de precipitação no continente sul-americano e (c) descrever os sistemas atmosféricos que contribuem para os diferentes ciclos anuais de precipitação nos diversos setores da AS, com base em revisão da literatura. De modo geral, a estação chuvosa da AS é o verão e a seca, o inverno. Nessas estações do ano, diferentes sistemas atmosféricos são responsáveis pela precipitação.

Renewable energy is key for the development of African countries, and knowing the best location for the implementation of solar and wind energy projects is important within this context. The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of climate change on solar and wind energy potential over Africa under low end (RCP2.6) and high end (RCP8.5) emission scenarios using a set of new high resolution (25 km) simulations with the Regional Climate Model version 4 (RegCM4) produced as part of the CORDEX-CORE initiative. The projections focus on two periods: (i) the near future (2021–2040) and ii) the mid-century future (2041–2060). The performance of the RegCM4 ensemble mean (Rmean) in simulating relevant present climate variables (1995–2014) is first evaluated with respect to the ERA5 reanalysis and satellite-based data. The Rmean reproduces reasonably well the observed spatial patterns of solar irradiance, air temperature, total cloud cover, wind speed at 100 m above the ground level, photovoltaic power potential (PVP), concentrated solar power output (CSPOUT) and wind power density (WPD) over Africa, though some biases are still evident, especially for cloud-related variables. For the future climate, the sign of the changes is consistent in both scenarios but with more intense magnitude in the middle of the century RCP8.5 scenario. Considering the energy variables, the Rmean projects a general decrease in PVP, which is more pronounced in the mid-century future and under RCP8.5 (up to 2%). Similarly, a general increase in CSPOUT (up to 2%) is projected over the continent under both the RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios. The projection in WPD shows a similar change (predominant increase) in the near and mid-century future slices under both RCPs with a maximum increase of 20%. The present study suggests that the RCP2.6 emission scenario, in general, favours the implementation of renewable energy in Africa compared to the RCP8.5.

South America is a vast continent characterized by diverse atmospheric phenomena and climate regimes. In this context, seasonal climate predictions are helpful for decision-making in several relevant socioeconomic segments in this territory, such as agriculture and energy generation. Thus, the present work evaluates the performance of ECMWF-SEAS5 in simulating the South American precipitation regimes by applying a non-hierarchical clustering technique. In addition, the study describes the main atmospheric systems that cause precipitation in each cluster and updates a previous work performed in South America in 2010. As a result, ECMWF-SEAS5 simulates (with good correspondence) the eight climate regimes identified in the analysis of precipitation from the Climate Prediction Center (CPC). Moreover, ECMWF-SEAS5 has a satisfactory ability in representing the rainfall regime in low and medium climate predictability regions, such as central and southern South America. ECMWF-SEAS5 has good performance in the climate characterization of South America and it gives us confidence in using its seasonal climate predictions throughout the continent.