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Freshwater delivery to the central Georgia coast is alternately correlated with the Bermuda High Index (BHI) and the El Niño/Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), but only in a limited way with the North Atlantic Oscillation Index (NAOI). The BHI describes the east-west position of the southern pole of the NAO, which influences southeastern U.S.A. weather more than the north-south NAO. Three-month standardized anomalies of Altamaha River discharge and precipitation at two stations in its watershed and one on the coast were compared with each other and the three climate indices. In winter, precipitation is correlated more with winter SOI than with other climate indices, but precipitation is only weakly correlated with the previous winter's SOI during other seasons. In spring, the BHI develops a strong correlation with coastal precipitation. This influence weakens somewhat during summer and fall but spreads to the Altamaha watershed. Fall precipitation is correlated with the spring ! NAOI as well as the fall BHI. At times, climate signals explain as much as 29% of the variability in local data. Evaluating the relative strengths of these climate signals will aid in estimating the potential effects of climate changes in eastern Georgia.

Sheldon, J.E. and Burd, A.B. 2008. Poster: Seasonal effects of the Southern Oscillation and Bermuda High on freshwater delivery to the central Georgia coast. GCE-LTER 2008 Annual Meeting, March 14-15, 2008, Athens, Georgia.