Middle atmospheric research

We began our research on the middle atmosphere around 2015 at our department, and within the Czech Republic, we are the only group systematically studying the stratosphere and mesosphere. Our focus is on the dynamics, circulation, long-term trends, and the effects of climate change in the middle atmosphere. A significant part of our research involves the impact of atmospheric waves, which led to the creation of a separate group dedicated to the study of gravity waves in 2023. Our activities significantly overlap with those of this group. In 2024, we further initiated interdisciplinary research on the impacts of geoengineering, particularly Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI), in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Vigo and EphysLab.

Throughout its existence, our group has established active collaborations with several international partners and participated in numerous national and international research projects. Within the study program, issues related to the middle atmosphere are presented in the compulsory lecture „Stratosphere,“ and we also offer a range of topics for bachelor's, master's, and doctoral theses. Students are actively involved in ongoing projects and research as part of their thesis work.

  Group Leaders: prof. RNDr. Petr Pišoft, Ph.D., RNDr. Petr Šácha, Ph.D
Doctoral students: Mgr. Zuzana Procházková, Mgr. Radek Zajíček, MSc. Massimo Martina, Mgr. Dominika Hájková

Research Topics:

• Long-term trends and the manifestations of climate change in the middle atmosphere
• Changes in large-scale circulation and transport in the middle atmosphere
• Sudden stratospheric warmings, their detection, and impacts
• The influence of atmospheric waves, particularly the impact of localized gravity waves
• Implementation and impacts of geoengineering in the stratosphere 

International collaboration:

• ISSI Team 544 Impacts of Climate Change on the Middle and Upper Atmosphere and Atmospheric Drag of Space Objects
• APARC DynVarMIP (https://www.aparc-climate.org/activities/dynamical-variability/)
• Environmental Physics Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences of Ourense, University of Vigo, Spain, research collaboration focused on the middle atmospheric processes and geoengineering (https://ephyslab.uvigo.es/en/home/)
• Institute for Meteorology, University of Leipzig, Germany, research collaboration focused on the middle atmospheric dynamics and gravity waves (https://www.physes.uni-leipzig.de/en/institute-for-meteorology)
• Institute of Meteorology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria, collaboration focused on the middle atmospheric processes (https://boku.ac.at/en/wau/met)
• Wegener Center for Climate and Global Change, University of Graz, Austria, research collaboration focused on GPS RO profiles and gravity waves (https://wegcenter.uni-graz.at/en/)

Selected papers

2024

• GARNY, H., Eichinger, R., Laube, J. C., Ray, E. A., Stiller, G. P., Bönisch, H., Saunders, L., and Linz, M.: Correction of stratospheric age of air (AoA) derived from sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) for the effect of chemical sinks, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 4193–4215, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4193-2024, 2024.
• GUPTA, A., R. Reichert, A. Dörnbrack, H. Garny, R. Eichinger, I. Polichtchouk, B. Kaifler, and T. Birner: Estimates of Southern Hemispheric Gravity Wave Momentum Fluxes across Observations, Reanalyses, and Kilometer-Scale Numerical Weather Prediction Model. J. Atmos. Sci., 81, 583–604, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-23-0095.1, 2024.
• ŠÁCHA, P., Zajíček, R., Kuchař, A., Eichinger, R., Pišoft, P., and Rieder, H. E.: Disentangling the advective Brewer-Dobson circulation change, Geophys. Res. Let., 51, e2023GL105919. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL105919, 2024.

2023

• HUFNAGL, Leonhard – EICHINGER, Roland – GARNY, Hella – BIRNER, Thomas – KUCHAR, Ales – JOECKEL, Patrick – GRAF, Phoebe. Stratospheric Ozone Changes Damp the CO2-Induced Acceleration of the Brewer-Dobson Circulation. Journal of Climate. 2023, 36(10), 3305–3320. ISSN 0894–8755. https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-22-0512.1.
• EICHINGER, Roland – RHODE, Sebastian – GARNY, Hella – PREUSSE, Peter – PIŠOFT, Petr – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – JÖCKEL, Patrick – KERKWEG, Astrid – KERN, Bastian. Emulating lateral gravity wave propagation in a global chemistry-climate model (EMAC v2.55.2) through horizontal flux redistribution. Geoscientific Model Development. 2023, 16(19), 5561–5583. ISSN 1991–959X. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-5561-2023.
• PROCHÁZKOVÁ, Zuzana – KRUSE, Christopher G. – ALEXANDER, Joan – HOFFMANN, Lars – BACMEISTER, Julio T. – HOLT, Laura – WRIGHT, Corwin – SATO, Kaoru – GISINGER, Sonja – ERN, Manfred – GELDENHUYS, Markus – PREUSSE, Peter – ŠÁCHA, Petr. Sensitivity of Mountain Wave Drag Estimates on Separation Methods and Proposed Improvements. Journals of the Atmospheric Sciences. 2023, 80(7), 1661–1680. ISSN 0022–4928. https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-22-0151.1.
• KARAMI, Khalil – BORCHERT, Sebastian – EICHINGER, Roland – JACOBI, Christoph – KUCHAR, Ales – MEHRDAD, Sina – PIŠOFT, Petr – ŠÁCHA, Petr. The Climatology of Elevated Stratopause Events in the UA-ICON Model and the Contribution of Gravity Waves. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-ATMOSPHERES. 2023, 128(7), e2022JD037907. ISSN 2169–897X. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JD037907. 

2022

• KRUSE, Christopher G – ALEXANDER, M. Joan – HOFFMANN, Lars – VAN NIEKERK, Annelize – POLICHTCHOUK, Inna – BACMEISTER, Julio T – HOLT, Laura – PLOUGONVEN, Riwal – ŠÁCHA, Petr – WRIGHT, Corwin – SATO, Kaoru – SHIBUYA, Ryosuke – GISINGER, Sonja – ERN, Manfred – MEYER, Catrin, I – STEIN, Olaf. Observed and Modeled Mountain Waves from the Surface to the Mesosphere near the Drake Passage. Journals of the Atmospheric Sciences. 2022, 79(4), 909–932. ISSN 0022–4928. https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-21-0252.1.
• LOEFFEL, Sheena – EICHINGER, Roland – GARNY, Hella – REDDMANN, Thomas – FRITSCH, Frauke – VERSICK, Stefan – STILLER, Gabriele – HAENEL, Florian. The impact of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) sinks on age of air climatologies and trends. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2022, 22(2), 1175–1193. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-1175-2022.
• EICHINGER, Roland – ŠÁCHA, Petr. Overestimated acceleration of the advective Brewer-Dobson circulation due to stratospheric cooling (vol 146, pg 3850, 2020). Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society. 2022, 148(744), 1610–1610. ISSN 0035–9009. https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.4260.

2021

• ŠÁCHA, Petr – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – EICHINGER, Roland – PIŠOFT, Petr – JACOBI, C – RIEDER, H. E. Diverse Dynamical Response to Orographic Gravity Wave Drag Hotspots-A Zonal Mean Perspective. Geophysical Research Letters. 2021, 48(13), e2021GL093305. ISSN 0094–8276. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL093305.
• KOZUBEK, Michal – LASTOVICKA, Jan – ZAJÍČEK, Radek. Climatology and Long-Term Trends in the Stratospheric Temperature and Wind Using ERA5. Remote Sensing [online]. 2021, 13(23), 4923. ISSN 2072–4292. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13234923.
• PIŠOFT, Petr – ŠÁCHA, Petr – POLVANI, Lorenzo M – ANEL, Juan Antonio – DE LA TORRE, Laura – EICHINGER, Roland – FOELSCHE, Ulrich – HUSZÁR, Peter – JACOBI, Christoph – KARLICKÝ, Jan – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – MIKŠOVSKÝ, Jiří – ŽÁK, Michal – RIEDER, Harald E. Stratospheric contraction caused by increasing greenhouse gases. Environmental Research Letters. 2021, 16(6), 064038. ISSN 1748–9326. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abfe2b.
• DIETMUELLER, Simone – GARNY, Hella – EICHINGER, Roland – BALL, William T. Analysis of recent lower-stratospheric ozone trends in chemistry climate models. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2021, 21(9), 6811–6837. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6811-2021.
• IGLESIAS-SUAREZ, Fernando – WILD, Oliver – KINNISON, Douglas E – GARCIA, Rolando R – MARSH, Daniel R – LAMARQUE, Jean-Francois – RYAN, Edmund M – DAVIS, Sean M – EICHINGER, Roland – SAIZ-LOPEZ, Alfonso – YOUNG, Paul J. Tropical Stratospheric Circulation and Ozone Coupled to Pacific Multi-Decadal Variability. Geophysical Research Letters. 2021, 48(11), e2020GL092162. ISSN 0094–8276. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL092162. 

2020

• SAMTLEBEN, Nadja – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – ŠÁCHA, Petr – PIŠOFT, Petr – JACOBI, Christoph. Mutual Interference of Local Gravity Wave Forcings in the Stratosphere. Atmosphere. 2020, 11(11), 1249. ISSN 2073–4433. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11111249.
• EICHINGER, Roland – ŠÁCHA, Petr. Overestimated acceleration of the advective Brewer-Dobson circulation due to stratospheric cooling. Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society. 2020, 146(733), 3850–3864. ISSN 0035–9009. https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.3876.
• KUCHAŘ, Aleš – ŠÁCHA, Petr – EICHINGER, Roland – JACOBI, Christoph – PIŠOFT, Petr – RIEDER, Harald. On the intermittency of orographic gravity wave hotspots and its importance for middle atmosphere dynamics. Weather and Climate Dynamics [online]. 2020, 1(1), 481–495. ISSN 2698–4016. https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-1-481-2020.
• SAMTLEBEN, Nadja – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – ŠÁCHA, Petr – PIŠOFT, Petr – JACOBI, Christoph. Impact of local gravity wave forcing in the lower stratosphere on the polar vortex stability: effect of longitudinal displacement. Annales Geophysicae. 2020, 38(1), 95–108. ISSN 0992–7689. https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-38-95-2020.

2019

• EICHINGER, Roland – DIETMUELLER, Simone – GARNY, Hella – ŠÁCHA, Petr – BIRNER, Thomas – BOENISCH, Harald – PITARI, Giovanni – VISIONI, Daniele – STENKE, Andrea – ROZANOV, Eugene – REVELL, Laura – PLUMMER, David A. – JOECKEL, Patrick – OMAN, Luke – DEUSHI, Makoto – KINNISON, Douglas E. – GARCIA, Rolando – MORGENSTERN, Olaf – ZENG, Guang – STONE, Kane Adam – SCHOFIELD, Robyn. The influence of mixing on the stratospheric age of air changes in the 21st century. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2019, 19(2), 921–940. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-921-2019.
• ŠÁCHA, Petr – EICHINGER, Roland – GARNY, Hella – PIŠOFT, Petr – DIETMUELLER, Simone – DE LA TORRE, Laura – PLUMMER, David A. – JOECKEL, Patrick – MORGENSTERN, Olaf – ZENG, Guang – BUTCHART, Neal – ANEL, Juan A.. Extratropical age of air trends and causative factors in climate projection simulations. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2019, 19(11), 7627–7647. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7627-2019.
• SAMTLEBEN, Nadja – JACOBI, Christoph – PIŠOFT, Petr – ŠÁCHA, Petr – KUCHAŘ, Aleš. Effect of latitudinally displaced gravity wave forcing in the lower stratosphere on the polar vortex stability. Annales Geophysicae. 2019, 37(4), 507–523. ISSN 0992–7689. https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-37-507-2019.

2018

• PIŠOFT, Petr – ŠÁCHA, Petr – MIKŠOVSKÝ, Jiří – HUSZÁR, Peter – SCHERLLIN-PIRSCHER, Barbara – FOELSCHE, Ulrich. Revisiting internal gravity waves analysis using GPS RO density profiles: comparison with temperature profiles and application for wave field stability study. Atmospheric Measurement Techniques. 2018, 11(1), 515–527. ISSN 1867–1381. https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-515-2018.
• ŠÁCHA, Petr – MIKŠOVSKÝ, Jiří – PIŠOFT, Petr. Interannual variability in the gravity wave drag – vertical coupling and possible climate links. Earth System Dynamics. 2018, 9(2), 647–661. ISSN 2190–4979. https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-9-647-2018. 

2017

• KUCHAŘ, Aleš – BALL, William T. – ROZANOV, Eugene V. – STENKE, Andrea – REVELL, Laura – MIKŠOVSKÝ, Jiří – PIŠOFT, Petr – PETER, Thomas. On the aliasing of the solar cycle in the lower stratospheric tropical temperature. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-ATMOSPHERES. 2017, 122(17), 9076–9093. ISSN 2169–897X. https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JD026948. 

2016

• BALL, Will – HAIGH, Joanna D. – ROZANOV, Eugene – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – SUKHODOLOV, Timofei – TUMMON, Fionna – SHAPIRO, Anna V. – SCHMUTZ, Werner. High solar cycle spectral variations inconsistent with stratospheric ozone observations. Nature Geoscience. 2016, 2016(Neuveden), 1–6. ISSN 1752–0894. https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2640.
• BALL, William T. – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – ROZANOV, Eugene V. – STAEHELIN, Johannes – TUMMON, Fiona – SMITH, Anne K. – SUKHODOLOV, Timofei – STENKE, Andrea – REVELL, Laura – COULON, Ancelin – SCHMUTZ, Werner – PETER, Thomas. An upper-branch Brewer-Dobson circulation index for attribution of stratospheric variability and improved ozone and temperature trend analysis. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2016, 16(24), 15485–15500. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-15485-2016.
• MUTHERS, S. – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – STENKE, A. – SCHMITT, J. – ANET, J. G. – RAIBLE, C. C. – STOCKER, T. F.. Stratospheric age of air variations between 1600 and 2100. Geophysical Research Letters. 2016, 43(10), 5409–5418. ISSN 0094–8276. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL068734.
• ŠÁCHA, Petr – LILIENTHAL, Friederike – JACOBI, Christoph – PIŠOFT, Petr. Influence of the spatial distribution of gravity wave activity on the middle atmospheric dynamics. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2016, 16(24), 15755–15775. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-15755-2016. 

2015

• ŠÁCHA, Petr – KUCHAŘ, Aleš – JACOBI, C. – PIŠOFT, Petr. Enhanced internal gravity wave activity and breaking over the northeastern Pacific-eastern Asian region. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2015, 15(22), 13097–13112. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-13097-2015.
• KUCHAŘ, Aleš – ŠÁCHA, Petr – MIKŠOVSKÝ, Jiří – PIŠOFT, Petr. The 11-year solar cycle in current reanalyses: a (non)linear attribution study of the middle atmosphere. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 2015, 15(12), 6879–6895. ISSN 1680–7316. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-6879-2015. 

2014

• ŠÁCHA, Petr – FOELSCHE, Ulrich – PIŠOFT, Petr. Analysis of internal gravity waves with GPS RO density profiles. Atmospheric Measurement Techniques. 2014, 7(12), 4123–4132. ISSN 1867–1381. https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-4123-2014.