Abstract
Given the current concerns about climate change, particularly, the stratospheric temperature effect on climatic surface temperature, it is of fundamental importance to investigate the impact of the lower stratospheric temperature on regional climate. This paper examines the lower stratospheric temperature (LST) at 50 hPa in the winter season and its relation to the surface air temperature (ST) over the Arabian Peninsula in the period 1951-2016. Generally, LST had an insignificant decreasing trend over the entire period, with a relatively high standard deviation of 1.3 degrees C. According to the coefficient of variability (COV), the fluctuation in the LST from year to year is relatively high, especially in the last reference period (1981-2010). An insignificant increasing (0.05 degrees C per year) trend through the period between 1951 and 1992 was observed, while an insignificant decreasing (-0.05 degrees C per year) trend was observed during the second period of 1993-2016. From the spectral analysis, the periodicity cycles of LST time series at periods of about 2.2, 2.54, and 13.2 years with respect to the 95% significance confidence level were found. LST may be influenced by quasi-biennial oscillation and the sunspot cycle. A strong relationship was found between LST and ST over the Arabian Peninsula.