Connection between interannual variability of the western Pacific and eastern Indian Oceans in the 1997 - 1998 El Nino event

In this paper, the sea surface height and the heat content of the upper ocean are analyzed to retrieve the relationship of interannual variabilities between the tropical western Pacific and eastern Indian Oceans during the 1997 - 1998 El Nino event. In the prophase of this El Nino, the negative sea level anomalies (SLA) occurred in the tropical western Pacific (TWP) firstly, and then appeared in the tropical eastern Indian Ocean (TEI). The negative heat content anomalies (HCA) emerged in the TWP before this El Nino burst while the SLA signals developed over there. During the mature stage of this El Nino, two kinds of signals in the TWP and TEI turned to be the maximum negative sequently. Due to the connected interannual adjustment between the TEI and TWP, we adopted a method to estimate the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) transport by calculating the HCA budget in the TEI. The indirect estimation of the ITF was comparable to the observation values. Therefore, the anomalies in the TEI had been proved as adv     

Signal propagations and linkages of subsurface temperature anomalies in the tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean

The propagation characteristics of signals along different zonal-time profiles are analyzed using surface and subsurface temperature anomalies over the tropical Pacific and Indian oceans. Analyses show that there are intrinsic relationships between El Nio events in the eastern equatorial Pacific and dipole events in the equatorial Indian Ocean. In the region of tropical North Pacific between the equator and 16°N, there is a circle of propagation of subsurface temperature anomalies. El Nio events only happen when the warm subsurface signals reach the eastern equatorial Pacific. Dipole events are characterized when a warm subsurface signal travels along off-equatorial Indian Ocean to the western boundary. From these analyses, we believe that subsurface temperature anomalies can be considered to be the oceanographic early signal to forecast El Nio events in Pacific Ocean and dipole events in Indian Ocean, respectively.     

A weak El Nio event in 2002 detected by the astronomical observation

El Ni駉 is a kind of the disastrous events occurring in the central and eastern parts of tropical Pacific. It pre-sents itself as anomaly of sea surface temperature (SST) in these parts of the tropical Pacific. It is called an El Ni駉 (La Ni馻) event whenever the tropical Pacific SST anom-aly is warmer (cooler) than 0.5℃(- 0.5℃) and lasts for over 6 months[1]. Southern oscillation (SO) is a seesaw- like variation of sea level pressure (SLP) in eastern and western parts of the souther…     

Tropospheric biennial oscillation of the western Pacific subtropical high and its relationships with the tropical SST and atmospheric circulation anomalies

There is the significant period of tropospheric biennial Oscillation(TBO)over East Asian monsoon region at the interannual timescales,which has the important influences on East China climate.Based on a set of reconstructed indices which describes the western Pacific subtropical high(WPSH)objectively,this paper focuses on the TBO component of WPSH,one of the key members of the East Asian Monsoon system,and its relationships with the tropical SST and atmospheric circulation anomalies.It is found that(1)As an important interannual component of WPSH,the time series of TBO has the obvious transition in the late1970s,and the variability of the WPSH’s TBO component is more significant after the late 1970s.(2)The time-lag correlations between the WPSH’s TBO and the tropical sea surface temperature(SST)anomalies in several key ocean regions are more significant and have longer correlation duration than the raw data.The response of the western boundary index to ENSO is earlier than the intensity index,and the time-lag correlations of them are up to maximum when lagging ENSO by 3–5 months and 5–6months,respectively.(3)In the course of the WPSH’s TBO cycle,the occurrence of the El Ni o-like anomaly in the tropical central-eastern Pacific in winter is always coupled with the weak East Asian winter monsoon,with the most significant enhancing phase of the WPSH’TBO.In contrast,the La Ni a-like anomaly in the central-eastern Pacific in winter is coupled with the strong East Asian winter monsoon,with the most weakening phase of the WPSH’s TBO.(4)The distribution of the tropical SST and atmospheric circulations anomalies are asymmetric in the TBO cycle.The WPSH’s TBO is more significant in the period of the developing El Ni o-like anomaly in central-eastern Pacific than in the period of the developing La Ni a-like anomaly.Therefore,during the period of developing El Ni o-like anomaly,more attention should be paid to the interannual component of TBO signal in the short-term climate prediction.     

Interannual variation of North China rainfall in rainy season and SSTs in the equatorial eastern Pacific

The rainfall in North China during rainy season （July and August （JA）） exhibits a strong interannual variability. In this study, the atmospheric circulation and SST anomalies associated with the interannual variation of JA North China rainfall are examined. It is found that on the interannual timescale, the JA North China rainfall is associated with significant SST anomalies in the equatorial eastern Pacific, and the North China rainfall and SST anomaly in the equatorial eastern Pacific correspond to the similar variation of the upper-level westerly jet stream over East Asia. A possible mechanism is proposed for the influence of the SST anomalies in the equatorial eastern Pacific on the North China rainfall.     

Preliminary results of a new global ocean reanalysis

Using a new global ocean reanalysis of the second generation Global Ocean Data Assimilation System of the Beijing Climate Center(BCC_GODAS2.0) spanning the period 1990-2009,we firstly quantify the accuracy of BCC_GODAS2.0 in representing the temperature and salinity by comparing with OISST and SODA data.The results show that the assimilation system may effectively improve the estimations of temperature and salinity by assimilating all kinds of observations,especially in the equatorial eastern Pacific.Moreover,the root mean square errors of monthly temperature and salinity are respectively reduced by 0.53℃ and 0.28 psu,compared with the model control simulation results.Then,the applicability of this ocean reanalysis for sea surface temperature(SST) anomaly variability in the tropical Pacific is evaluated with the observational HadISST data.The NINO3 index of the new reanalysis shows a good agreement with that of HadISST,with a correlation of 93.6%.Variations in SST from BCC_GODAS2.0 are similar to those obtained from HadISST data along the equator,showing the major large zonal-scale features such as the strong magnitude of seasonal cycle.The amplitude of SST anomaly standard deviation in the equatorial eastern Pacific is also closer to observations(HadISST) than NCEP GODAS does.Besides,the first two leading empirical orthogonal function(EOF) modes of the monthly SST anomalies over the tropical Pacific region are explored.The EOF1 pattern of BCC_GODAS2.0 captures a traditional El Ni o pattern,which improves magnitudes of the positive SST anomaly in the cold tongue of the eastern Pacific.The EOF2 pattern exhibits a El Ni o Modoki pattern.Comparatively,the EOF2 pattern of BCC_GODAS2.0 extends more strongly toward the subtropics.It also overcomes the problem that negative loadings are confined in the narrow equatorial eastern Pacific.Consequently,the magnitude and spatial distribution of the leading EOF patterns of BCC_GODAS2.0 are well consistent with those of HadISST.     

Different types of La Niña events and different responses of the tropical atmosphere

Historical La Nia events since 1950 are divided into Eastern Pacific(EP) type and Central Pacific(CP) type,and the SSTA developing features as well as the different responses of the tropical atmosphere are further analyzed by using multiple datasets.Classification of different types La Nia is based on the normalized Ni o3 and Ni o4 indices and the SSTA distribution pattern during the mature phase.The minimum negative SSTA for CP La Nia is located over the equatorial central Pacific near the dateline,more westward than that of EP La Nia.It has stronger intensity and larger east-west zonal difference of SSTA over the equatorial Pacific than EP La Nia.Influenced by the different SSTA distribution pattern,CP La Nia induces more westward location of the anomalous sinking motion and the anomalous low-level divergent and high-level convergent winds over the equatorial eastern Pacific.The different response of the tropical atmospheric circulation between EP and CP La Nia is more significant in the upper troposphere than in the lower troposphere.However,the tropical precipitation patterns during the mature phase of EP and CP La Nia are much similar,except the less(more) precipitation over the equatorial central Pacific(eastern Indian Ocean-western Pacific) during CP La Nia than during EP La Nia.     

Indonesian Throughflow in an eddy-permitting oceanic GCM

An eddy-permitting quasi-global oceanic GCM was driven by wind stresses from reanalysis data for the period of 1958-2001 to get the time series of the upper circulation in the Indonesian Sea. The model represents a reasonable pathway of Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) with Makassar Strait making the major passage transfer the North Pacific water southward. The simulated annual mean ITF transport is 14.5 Sv, with 13.2 Sv in the upper 700 m. Annual cycle is the dominant signal for the seasonal climatology of the upper layer transport. Both the annual mean and seasonal cycle agree well with the observation. The overall correlation between the interannual anomaly of the ITF transport and Nino 3.4 index reaches -0.65 in the simulation,which indicates that ENSO-related interannual variability in the Pacific is dominant in controlling the ITF transport. The relationship between the interannual anomalies of ITF and sea surface temperature in the Pacific, the Indian Ocean is not fixed in the simulation. In 1994, for instance, the intensive Indian Ocean sea surface temperature anomaly plays a dominant role in the formation of an impressive large transport of ITF.     

Relationship between the tropical cyclone genesis over the Northwest Pacific and the sea surface temperature anomalies

Using the tropical cyclone (TC) data derived from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and the sea surface temperature data derived from the Joint Environmental Data Analysis Center (JEDAC) at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography from January 1955 to December 2000, we analyzed the relationship between the TC genesis over the Northwest Pacific (NWP) and the sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA) over the Pacific basin. A long-term trend indicated that the highest frequency of monthly TC genesis appeared earlier and the annual genesis sum increased gradually during the last half century with some oscillations. No significant synchronous correlation was found between the NWP TC events and the SSTA over the Pacific basin, while the annual sum of TC genesis was closely related with the SSTA averaged from the first three months (January, February and March) of the year in the equatorial western and eastern Pacific and over mid-high latitudes of the North Pacific. The results implied that there are an interannual El Nio SSTA mode in the equatorial western and eastern Pacific and an interdecadal SSTA mode in the northern Pacific, which affected the TC genesis. A regression analysis between the first three-month SSTA and the annual TC sum based on two time scales was conducted. The correlation coefficient between simulated and observed TC sums reached a high value of 0.77.     

The tropical Pacific-Indian Ocean temperature anomaly mode and its effect

Temperature anomaly in the Indian Ocean is closely related to that in the Pacific Ocean because of the Walker circulation and the Indonesian throughflow. So only the El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the Pacific cannot entirely explain the influence of sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) on climate variation. The tropical Pacific-Indian Ocean temperature anomaly mode (PIM) is presented based on the comprehensive research on the pattern and feature of SSTA in both Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. The features of PIM and ENSO mode and their influences on the climate in China and the rainfall in India are further compared. For proving the observation results, numerical experiments of the global atmospheric general circulation model are conducted. The results of observation and sensitivity experiments show that presenting PIM and studying its influence are very important for short-range climate prediction.     

Features of tropical cyclone landfalls over East Asia corresponding to three types of Pacific warming decaying phase

This study examines the tropical cyclone （TC） landfall activities over the East Asia in three types of decaying phase of warm sea surface temperature anomalies （SSTAs） over the equatorial central-eastern Pacific： eastern Pacific warming decaying to La Nifia, eastern Pacific warming decaying to a neutral E1 Nifio-Southern Oscilla- tion phase, and a central Pacific warming decaying year. Results show that, for the type of eastern Pacific wanning decaying to La Nifia, more TCs make landfall over Hainan Island and Beibu Gulf, whereas fewer TCs reach eastern China coast. In particular, the number of landfalling TCs remarkably decreases in the decaying phase of eastern Pacific E1 Nifio to a neutral year. During the decaying phase of central Pacific E1 Nifio events, more TCs tend to make landfall over southern China, Indochina Peninsula and the Philippines. The anomalies of atmospheric circu- lation and environmental conditions induced by the SSTAs over the tropical Pacific in the different decaying types are responsible for the evident variation in features of TC landfall.     

Relationship between the tropical cyclone genesis over the Northwest Pacific and the sea surface temperature anomalies

Using the tropical cyclone (TC) data derived from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and the sea surface temperature data derived from the Joint Environmental Data Analysis Center (JEDAC) at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography from January 1955 to December 2000, we analyzed the relationship between the TC genesis over the Northwest Pacific (NWP) and the sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA) over the Pacific basin. A long-term trend indicated that the highest frequency of monthly TC genesis appeared earlier and the annual genesis sum increased gradually during the last half century with some oscillations. No significant synchronous correlation was found between the NWP TC events and the SSTA over the Pacific basin, while the annual sum of TC genesis was closely related with the SSTA averaged from the first three months (January, February and March) of the year in the equatorial western and eastern Pacific and over mid-high latitudes of the North Pacific. The results implied that there are an interannual El Nio SSTA mode in the equatorial western and eastern Pacific and an interdecadal SSTA mode in the northern Pacific, which affected the TC genesis. A regression analysis between the first three-month SSTA and the annual TC sum based on two time scales was conducted. The correlation coefficient between simulated and observed TC sums reached a high value of 0.77.     

The spring soil moisture and the summer rainfall in eastern China

The relation between the soil moisture in spring and the rainfall in summer in eastern China is investi- gated. Results show that the summer rainfall in eastern China is closely related to the spring soil moisture in the area from North China to the lower reaches of Yangtze River (NCYR). When spring soil moisture anomalies over NCYR are positive, the summer precipitation exhibits positive anomalies in Northeast China and the lower reaches of Yangtze River, and negative anomalies in southern China and North China. The higher soil moisture over NCYR cools land surface and reduces the land-sea tem- perature gradient, which weakens East Asian summer monsoon. The western Pacific Subtropical High (WPSH) is located to the south and shifts westward, resulting in more rainfall in the lower reaches of Yangtze River and less in southern China and North China.     

Interplay between the Indonesian Throughflow and the South China Sea Throughflow

Analysis both based on the wind stress and ocean assimilation dataset shows that the interannual variability of the Indonesian Throughflow and the South China Sea （Luzon Strait） Throughflow is out of phase. Wind anomaly forcing in the equatorial Pacific plays an important role in setting up this phase relation. During El NiSo events, the westedy wind bursts intensify the Northern Equator Current and induce a northward shift of its bifurcation point. As a result, the partition of volume transport between the Kuroshio and the Mindanao Current is changed, with the Kuroshio transport decreased and the Mindanao Current increased. The undershooting/overshooting phenomena occur at the Luzon Strait and the Sulawesi-Mindanao passage, caused by variability of these two currents. Water transport from the Pacific to the South China Sea increases with the Kuroshio transport decreased, and transport from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean decreases with the Mindanao Current transport increased. The situation is reversed during La Nina. Therefore, the ocean dynamic meaning is profound to study the interannual variability relationship between the Indonesian Throughflow and the Luzon Strait Throughflow.     

The combined effects of the ENSO and the Arctic Oscillation on the winter climate anomalies in East Asia

With the warm/cold phases of the El Ni o and Southern Oscillation (ENSO) as a background, the impacts of monthly variation in the Arctic Oscillation (AO) on the winter climate anomalies in East Asia are studied with the NCEP/DOE Reanalysis 2 data and the Chinese station data regarding temperature and rainfall. The combined effects of ENSO and the AO indicate that the winter climate anomalies are mainly influenced by the AO in northern China and the ENSO in southern China, when an El Ni o couples with a negative AO month or a La Ni a couples with a positive AO month. These climate anomalies in China are consistent with the mechanisms proposed in previous studies. However, most of China presents a different pattern of climate anomalies if an El Ni o couples with a positive AO month or a La Ni a couples with a negative AO month, with the exception of the temperature anomalies in northern China, which are still affected dominantly by the AO. Further analysis suggests that the causes are attributed to the differences in both the stratosphere-troposphere interaction and the extratropics-tropics interaction. In the former cases, zonal symmetric circulation prevails in the winter and the extratropics-tropics interaction is weakened. Thus, the influences of the ENSO and the AO on the East Asian climate mainly present linear combination effects. On the contrary, an annular mode of atmospheric circulation is not favored in the latter cases and the extratropics-tropics interaction is strong. Hence, the combined effects of the ENSO and the AO on the winter climate in East Asia present nonlinear characteristics.     

Spatial-temporal variability of thermohaline intrusions in the northwestern tropical Pacific Ocean

Using repeated hydrographic measurements at 137°E,spatial-temporal variability of thermohaline intrusions in the northwestern tropical Pacific are investigated.Intrusions can be found in the main thermocline throughout the section,with their strength decreasing rapidly poleward.The strongest intrusions exist at the North Equatorial Countercurrent(NECC) where North/South Pacific thermocline water converges.These intrusions also exhibit temporal variations in strength which are closely associated with the meridional displacement of the NECC.Intrusion strength peaks in boreal winter when the NECC reaches its northernmost position of the year.At interannual time scale,intrusions tend to be weak(strong) during El Ni o(La Ni a) episodes.Variations in intrusion strength also lead to prominent fluctuation of lateral diffusivity K L and cross-front temperature flux F Θ.F Θ exhibits significant year-to-year changes which are well correlated with ENSO index,suggesting a possible role of intrusions in the low-latitude Pacific climate variability.     

Lag influences of winter circulation conditions in the tropical western Pacific on South Asian summer monsoon

<正>By means of monthly mean NCEP/NCAR data analyses, this note investigates the lag influences of winter circulation conditions in the tropical western Pacific on South Asian summer monsoon through the methods of composite, correlation and statistical confident test. The results indicate clearly that winter climate variations in the equatorial western Pacific would produce significant influences on the following South Asian summer monsoon, and with the lapse of time the lag influences show clearly moving northward and extending westward features. When winter positive (negative) sea level pressure anomalies occupy the equatorial western Pacific, there is an anticyclonic (cyclonic) circulation anomaly appearing in the northwestern Pacific. With the lapse of time, the anticyclonic (cyclonic) circulation anomaly gradually moves to northeast, and its axis in the west-east directions also stretches, therefore, easterly (westerly) anomalies in the south part of the anticyclonic (cyclonic) circulation anomaly continuously expand westward to the peninsula of India. Undoubtedly, the South Asian summer monsoon is weak (strong).     

Response of the northwestern Pacific upper water δ~(13)C to the last deglacial ventilation of the deep Southern Ocean

The deglacial δ~13C minimum events that originated from the ventilation of the deep Southern Ocean around Antarctica, have been recorded in a range of marine sediments from the southern to tropical oceans in late Pleistocene. However, the broad δ~13C minimum event was also reported as far as to the northern middle latitudes, in northwestern Pacific marginal sea areas, during the last deglaciation. In the northwestern Pacific, forcing from the northern high latitudes is strongly expressed, while the records of in- fluence from the southern high latitudes are few. The Kuroshio Source Region (KSR) forms a boundary between the northwestern Pacific and the southern, tropical Pacific. So, high-resolution planktonic foraminiferal records in core MD06-3054 from the KSR are well positioned to identify signals from the southern hemisphere in the northwestern Pacific. Planktonic foraminiferal tests from the upper 1030 cm of the core were subject to AMS14C, carbon and oxygen isotopic measurements. A negative excursion was found to occur from about 20.0-6.0 ka BP in δ~13C records of both surface (Globigerinoides ruber) and subsurface (Pulleni- atina obliquiloculata) dwellers, but the overall trends of the two curves have reversed since 26.5 ka BP. Moreover, the δ~13C rec- ord of G. ruber (the surface dweller) shows a robust link to the record of atmospheric CO2, and its changes precede the records of P. obliquiloculata (the subsurface dweller). According to the hydrologic conditions, the broad δ~13C minimum event recorded in the KSR is also a response to the increasing ventilation of the deep Southern Ocean around Antarctica during the last deglaciation. The inconsistency between the records of the surface and subsurface dwellers was possibly caused by the ways that the low δ~13C signal was transmitted. Subsurface water primarily received the low δ~13C signal from the Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW), whereas the surface water was probably mainly impacted by atmospheric CO2 in the KSR. The records from the KSR confirm the deduction that the broad δ~13C minimum event in the Okinawa Trough was due to the impact of tropical Pacific surface water dur- ing the last deglaciation, and suggest that signals from the southern high latitudes also can be delivered to the northern middle latitudes.     

Occurrence of two types of El Niño events and the subsurface ocean temperature anomalies in the equatorial Pacific

The relationships between the evolution of two types of E1 Nifio events and the subsurface ocean temperature anomaly （SOTA） in the equatorial Pacific are compared in this study. The results show that both types of E1 Nifio are negatively correlated to the SOTA in the equatorial western Pacific, but relationships are different in different phases of E1 Nifio. Furthermore, the occurrence of different types of E1 Nifio is related to different features of the equatorial thermocline, e.g. its zonal gradient, significant variation area, amplitude and duration of thermocline oscillation. The propagation of SOTA in the equator plays an important role during the evolution of both types of E1 Nifio, but shows dramatic differences in intensity, duration and phase reverse of warm SOTA. Moreover, the pathways of SOTA signal are different between these two types of E1 Nifio. The dominant pathway in the life cycle of Eastern Pacific （EP）-E1 Nifio lies on the equator and to its north, but there is no loop to the south of the equator. In contrast, the dominant pathway in Central Pacific （CP）-E1 Nifio is located on the equator and to its south, and the propagation signal of SOTA to the north of the equator is very weak. The relationships between the zonal wind anomalies and the two types of E1 Nifio are also preliminarily discussed. It is shown that EP-E1 Nifio is more likely to respond to the westerly anomalies over the equatorial central and western Pacific, while CP-E1 Nifio is more likely to respond to the westerly anomalies over the equatorial western Pacific and need the cooperation of easterly anomalies over the equa- torial eastern Pacific to certain extent.     

Relationship between the Antarctic oscillation in the western North Pacific typhoon frequency

Relationship between the Antarctic oscillation (AAO) and the western North Pacific typhoon number (WNPTN) in the interannual variability is examined in this research. The WNPTN is correlated with the AAO in June-July-August-September (JJAS) in 1949-1998 at -0.48 for the detrended time series, statistically significant at 99% level. The tropical atmospheric circulation as well as the sea surface temperature variability over the western Pacific associated with AAO has been analyzed. It follows that a positive phase of JJAS AAO corresponds to the larger magnitude of the vertical zonal wind shear, the anomalous low-lever anticyclonic circulation and anomalous high-level cyclonic circulation, and lower sea surface temperature in the major typhoon genesis region in the western North Pacific, thus providing unfavorable environment for the typhoon genesis, and vice versa.