<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><!DOCTYPE article  PUBLIC "-//NLM//DTD Journal Publishing DTD v3.0 20080202//EN" "http://dtd.nlm.nih.gov/publishing/3.0/journalpublishing3.dtd"><article xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" dtd-version="3.0" xml:lang="en" article-type="research article"><front><journal-meta><journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">IJAA</journal-id><journal-title-group><journal-title>International Journal of Astronomy and Astrophysics</journal-title></journal-title-group><issn pub-type="epub">2161-4717</issn><publisher><publisher-name>Scientific Research Publishing</publisher-name></publisher></journal-meta><article-meta><article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.4236/ijaa.2013.34048</article-id><article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">IJAA-40326</article-id><article-categories><subj-group subj-group-type="heading"><subject>Articles</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="Discipline-v2"><subject>Physics&amp;Mathematics</subject></subj-group></article-categories><title-group><article-title>
 
 
  Solar Activity and Meteorological Fluctuations in West Africa: Temperatures and Pluviometry in Burkina Faso, 1970-2012
 
</article-title></title-group><contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>ean-Louis</surname><given-names>Zerbo</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"><sup>1</sup></xref><xref ref-type="corresp" rid="cor1"><sup>*</sup></xref></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Frédéric</surname><given-names>Ouattara</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2"><sup>2</sup></xref></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Emmanuel</surname><given-names>Nanéma</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2"><sup>2</sup></xref></contrib></contrib-group><aff id="aff2"><addr-line>LERSEM, University of Koudougou, Koudougou, Burkina Faso</addr-line></aff><aff id="aff1"><addr-line>UFR/ST, Polytechnic University of Bobo Dioulasso, Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso</addr-line></aff><author-notes><corresp id="cor1">* E-mail:<email>jeanlouis.zerbo@gmail.com(EZ)</email>;</corresp></author-notes><pub-date pub-type="epub"><day>09</day><month>10</month><year>2013</year></pub-date><volume>03</volume><issue>04</issue><fpage>408</fpage><lpage>411</lpage><history><date date-type="received"><day>September</day>	<month>23,</month>	<year>2013</year></date><date date-type="rev-recd"><day>October</day>	<month>20,</month>	<year>2013</year>	</date><date date-type="accepted"><day>October</day>	<month>28,</month>	<year>2013</year></date></history><permissions><copyright-statement>&#169; Copyright  2014 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. </copyright-statement><copyright-year>2014</copyright-year><license><license-p>This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</license-p></license></permissions><abstract><p>
 
 
   In this paper we investigate the fluctuations of solar activity and their links with climatic parameters in West Africa. We achieve our research by investigating several data plotted using averages.<b> </b>Mean to our results we can assume that active solar is associated with weak incident cosmic ray consequently with low cloudiness which brings warming. Likewise, quiet solar is associated with important cloud cover and consequently brings important precipitations and chills terrestrial atmosphere. This implies the necessity to deal with space phenomenon by considering the severe interconnection between solar activity indices for interplanetary and earth environment weather forecasting. 
 
</p></abstract><kwd-group><kwd>Solar Activity; Temperatures; Precipitations; Cloud Cover; Solar Cycle</kwd></kwd-group></article-meta></front><body><sec id="s1"><title>1. Introduction</title><p>A few years ago, the way the sun was regarded has radically changed and there was a growing interest on SunEarth links, Sun-Earth problems, and Solar-Terrestrial Physics as a whole. Therefore the Sun-Earth study shows oneself so important for general science and the life on Earth as well. The discovery of solar wind, plasma flux constantly presents in the near Sun-Earth and interplanetary space helps improve now the investigations on SunEarth and solar activity variations. This heat radiation from the Sun is believed to be the primary factor of Earth climate conditions. Several studies have been made over the last decade on geomagnetic activities and weather variations (Delouis and Mayaud [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref1">1</xref>], Courtillot and Le Mouel [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref2">2</xref>]; Legrand and Simon [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref3">3</xref>], Simon and Legrand [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref4">4</xref>], Gonzalez et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref5">5</xref>], Ouattara et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref6">6</xref>], Zerbo et al. [7,8]) and local magnetic observations (Patel. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref9">9</xref>], Courtillot and Le Mouel [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref10">10</xref>]).</p><p>Our present research endeavors to make us understand the natural links between solar activity, geomagnetic activity, and terrestrial weather phenomenon in a large context including Earth, Sun, throughout climatology studies in Burkina Faso, equatorial area in West Africa.</p></sec><sec id="s2"><title>2. Data Sources and Data Analysis</title><p>Several data are used in our investigations: (1) Temperatures and pluviometric values taken from “Direction G&#233;n&#233;rale de M&#233;t&#233;orologie du Burkina Faso (1970-2012)”; (2) sunspot number (Rz) and the Polar Cap Index (PCI) from omni data set http://omniweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/form/dx1.html. Temperatures and pluviometry are used to show the time variation of climatic parameters. The PCI and the Rz are used to evaluate the global Joule heating and the solar cycle phases</p></sec><sec id="s3"><title>3. Results and Discussion</title><p>Figures 1 and 2 show the profiles of variation of two climatic parameters, precipitations (P˚) and temperatures (T˚) superimposed with sunspot numbers (Rz) for the time interval 1970-2012. From the <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1">Figure 1</xref> we can remark that the level of precipitations varies from with solar cycle and that the most important precipitations are recorded when sunspot numbers are lest significant. As to temperatures (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2">Figure 2</xref>), it shows itself increasing</p><p>since 1970. Referring ourselves to previous works on solar and geomagnetic activities done by Lockwood et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref11">11</xref>] and by Zerbo et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref8">8</xref>], where it is showed that the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) has doubled his intensity during this last century and that solar activity shows important gradual augmentation, we can presume the fact a link exists between solar activity and temperature variations as suggested by J. E. Solheim et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref12">12</xref>]. <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig3">Figure 3</xref> superimposes sunspot numbers and polar cap index (PCI). We can remark that the peaks in PCI profile occur near the sunspot maximum and more frequently on the declining of solar cycle. We can assume that the peaks observed in PC index are closely linked with rapid solar wind streams from the coronal holes and CMEs characteristics of these two solar cycle phases. Placing now our study in the context of solar cycle phases (Minimum, Increasing, Maximum, and Decreasing) and geomagnetic classification proposed by Zerbo et al. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref7">7</xref>], we made interesting analysis:</p><p>1) During Minimum phase where Quiet activity (QA) is predominant [6-8], precipitations increase (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1">Figure 1</xref>) and temperatures decreases (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2">Figure 2</xref>). This phase is characterized by slow solar wind speed and high density of solar plasma 2) During Maximum phase where Shock Activity (SA) is predominant [6-8], precipitations increase (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1">Figure 1</xref>) and temperatures fluctuates (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2">Figure 2</xref>). Here Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are the most important solar events with important energy dissipated in interplanetary medium modifying atmospheric circulation and chemistry (overpressure or depression).</p><p>3) During Increasing/Decreasing phase where Recurrent Activity (RA) is predominant, precipitations decrease (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1">Figure 1</xref>) and temperatures increases (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2">Figure 2</xref>). These periods are characterized by high stream solar wind speed flowing from coronal holes [6-8] and the</p><p>most disturbed magnetic field with important solar dynamo and joule effect.</p><p>All that implies that there is no zero climate response to the non constant energy receive from sun (G. Tsiropoula [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref13">13</xref>]). The possible mechanisms which can explain the sun-climate link is the link cosmic ray and cloud cover investigate by Peter L. [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref14">14</xref>] and the sun dynamo which effect local temperature (C. de Jager [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.40326-ref15">15</xref>]). We can schematize the mechanism as followed: active sun induces lest cloud cover and quiet sun important cloud cover and agree with the precipitations and temperatures profiles plotted in Figures 1 and 2.</p></sec><sec id="s4"><title>4. Conclusion</title><p>Interesting correlations are found between solar fluctuations and the two climatic parameters (P˚, T˚) investigated in our study. Mean to our results we can assume that active solar is associated with weak incident cosmic ray consequently with low cloudiness which brings warming. Likewise, quiet solar is associated with important cloud cover and consequently brings important precipitations and chills terrestrial atmosphere. Thus, natural link exists between solar activity and climatic parameters even if it is not the only cause of climate global warming.</p></sec><sec id="s5"><title>5. Acknowledgements</title><p>We are obliged to the anonymous referees with help to improve science. Special thanks to Direction G&#233;n&#233;rale de M&#233;t&#233;orologie in Burkina Faso, and Omni wed data base for providing data. Thanks a lot to IJAA editors.</p></sec><sec id="s6"><title>REFERENCES</title></sec><sec id="s7"><title>NOTES</title></sec></body><back><ref-list><title>References</title><ref id="scirp.40326-ref1"><label>1</label><mixed-citation publication-type="other" xlink:type="simple">H. Delouis and P. N. Mayaud., “Spectral Analysis of the Geomagnetic Activity Index aa over a 103-Year Interval,” Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 80, No. 34, 1975, pp. 4681-4688.  
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