My main research interest is the high-resolution reconstruction of atmospheric circulation patterns as internal drivers of climate variability. In two recent studies, we have demonstrated the relevance of the reconstruction of such patterns for the broader scientific community as well as for policy-makers.  In a first study (Trouet et al. 2009a), we have combined millennium-long, hydro-sensitive proxy records from two strategic places to reconstruct the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO).   A persistent positive NAO phase during medieval times was associated with shifts in the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) system and in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), potentially driven by solar forcing (Trouet et al. 2012).  In this study, we have determined the NAO as the natural driving force behind medieval warming in Central Europe. 

In another study (Trouet & Taylor 2010), climatic shifts and a 30-year cyclicity were determined in the first tree-ring based reconstruction of the Pacific North American (PNA) pattern (1725-1995).  The PNA pattern is a dominant mode of atmospheric circulation over North America that strongly influences fire danger and fire activity in northern California (see also: Fire-Climate Interactions).  The discovery of PNA cyclicity is therefore crucial in the development of regional fire prediction models.

I often make use of the KNMI Climate Explorer website for analysis and producing maps and therefore I decided to write a paper with Geert-Jan Van Oldenborgh, the manager of the Climate Explorer website, on its use for high-resolution paleoclimatology (Trouet and Van Oldenborgh, in review).