In search for interannual and interdecadal relations between climate variability and continental freshwater discharge to the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract: Variability of atmospheric circulation is considered one of the most important factors causing interannual and interdecadal variability of freshwater amount that is discharged from the continents. Here it is presented an analysis of the relations between the discharge variability of five major rivers in the Mediterranean basin (i.e. Adige, Arno Ebro, Po and Rhone) responsible for the 70% of total freshwater input into the Mediterranean Sea, and the variability of four atmospheric circulation patterns: East Atlantic (EA), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), Scandinavia (SCA) and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO).