An East Asian Subtropical Summer Monsoon Index and Its Relationship to Summer Rainfall in China

Using the monthly mean NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data and the monthly rainfall observations at 160 rain gauge stations of China during 1961 1999, and based on major characteristics of the atmospheric circulation over East Asia and the western Pacific, a simple index for the East Asian subtropical summer monsoon （EASSM） is defined. The relationship between this index and summer rainfall in China and associated circulation features are examined. A comparison is made between this index and other monsoon indices. The results indicate that the index defined herein is reflective of variations of both the thermal low pressure centered in Siberia and the subtropical ridge over the western Pacific. It epitomizes the intensity of the EASSM and the variability of summer rainfall along the Yangtze River. Analysis shows that the Siberian low has a greater effect on the rainfall than the subtropical ridge, suggesting that the summer rainfall variability over the eastern parts of China is to a large extent affected by anomalies of the atmospheric circulation and cold air development in the midlatitudes. Taking into account of the effects of both the Siberian low and the subtropical ridge can better capture the summer rainfall anomalies of China. The index exhibits interannual and decadal variabilities, with high-index values occurring mainly in the 1960s and 1970s and low-index values in the 1980s and 1990s. When the EASSM index is low, the Siberian low and the subtropical ridge are weaker, and northerly wind anomalies appear at low levels over the midlatitudes and subtropics of East Asia, whereas southwesterly wind anomalies dominate in the upper troposphere over the tropics and subtropics of Asia and the western Pacific. The northerly wind anomalies bring about frequent cold air disturbances from the midlatitudes of East Asia, strengthening the convergence and ascending motions along the Meiyu front, and result in an increase of summer rainfall over the Yangtze River.     

Tropical Cyclones over the Western North Pacific Strengthen the East Asia–Pacific Pattern during Summer

The contribution of tropical cyclones(TCs)to the East Asia–Pacific(EAP)teleconnection pattern during summer was investigated using the best track data of the Joint Typhoon Warning Center and NCEP-2 reanalysis datasets from 1979 to2018.The results showed that the TCs over the western North Pacific(WNP)correspond to a strengthened EAP pattern:During the summers of strong convection over the tropical WNP,TC days correspond to a stronger cyclonic circulation anomaly over the WNP in the lower troposphere,an enhanced seesaw pattern of negative and positive geopotential height anomalies over the subtropical WNP and midlatitude East Asia in the middle troposphere,and a more northward shift of the East Asian westerly jet in the upper troposphere.Further analyses indicated that two types of TCs with distinctly different tracks,i.e.,westward-moving TCs and northward-moving TCs,both favor the EAP pattern.The present results imply that TCs over the WNP,as extreme weather,can contribute significantly to summer-mean climate anomalies over the WNP and East Asia.     

Teleconnection Patterns along the Asian Jet Associated with Different Combinations of Convection Oscillations over the Indian Continent and Western North Pacific during Summer

A zonal teleconnection has been found along the Asian jet over the Eurasian continent during summer.In this study,the authors investigated circulation anomalies in the extratropics,in particular for the zonal teleconnection,under different combinations of subtropical convection anomalies over the northern Indian continent (IND) and the western North Pacific (WNP).The outof-phase configuration (i.e.,stronger (weaker) IND convection and weaker (stronger) WNP convection) was found to be more common than the in-phase configuration (i.e.,stronger (weaker) IND convection and stronger (weaker) WNP convection),which is consistent with previous results.Composite results indicated that circulation anomalies for out-of-phase configurations of 30-60-day convection oscillations are much stronger in the middle latitudes than those for in-phase configurations.In addition,zonal teleconnection patterns are predominant for the out-of-phase configurations,particularly for the configuration of strong IND convection and weak WNP convection;however,they are either weak or obscure for the in-phase configurations.These results suggest that the zonal teleconnection pattern along the Asian jet is dependent on different combinations of the IND and WNP subtropical convection anomalies.     

Extremely Active Tropical Cyclone Activities over the Western North Pacific and South China Sea in Summer 2018: Joint Effects of Decaying La Ni?a and Intraseasonal Oscillation

In summer 2018, a total of 18 tropical cyclones(TCs) formed in the western North Pacific(WNP) and South China Sea(SCS), among which 8 TCs landed in China, ranking respectively the second and the first highest since 1951.Most of these TCs travelled northwest to northward, bringing in heavy rainfall and strong winds in eastern China and Japan. The present study investigates the impacts of decaying La Ni?a and intraseasonal oscillation(ISO) on the extremely active TCs over the WNP and SCS in summer 2018 by use of correlation and composite analyses. It is found that the La Ni?a episode from October 2017 to March 2018 led to above-normal sea surface temperature(SST) over central–western Pacific, lower sea level pressure and 500-hPa geopotential height over WNP, and abnormally strong convective activities over the western Pacific in summer 2018. These preceding oceanic thermal conditions and their effects on circulation anomalies are favorable to TC genesis in summer. Detailed examination reveals that the monsoon trough was located further north and east, inducing more TCs in northern and eastern WNP; and the more eastward WNP subtropical high as well as the significant wave train with a "-+-+" height anomaly pattern over the midlatitude Eurasia–North Pacific region facilitated the northwest to northward TC tracks. Further analyses reveal that two successively active periods of Madden–Julian Oscillation(MJO) occurred in summer 2018 and the boreal summer intraseasonal oscillation(BSISO) was also active over WNP, propagating northward significantly, corresponding to the more northward TC tracks. The MJO was stagnant over the Maritime Continent to western Pacific,leading to notably enhanced convection in the lower troposphere and divergence in the upper troposphere, conducive to TC occurrences. In a word, the extremely active TC activities over the WNP and SCS in summer 2018 are closely linked with the decaying La Ni?a, and the MJO and BSISO; their joint effects result in increased TC occurrences and the TC tracks being shifted more northwest to northward than normal.     

ON THE PROCESS OF SUMMER MONSOON ONSET OVER EAST ASIA

Using daily observational rainfall data covered 194 stations of China from 1961 to 1995 andNCEP model analyzed pentad precipitation data of global grid point from 1979 to 1997,thedistribution of onset date of rainy season over Asian area from spring to summer is studied in thispaper.The analyzed results show that there exist two stages of rainy season onset over East Asianregion from spring to summer rainy season onset accompanying subtropical monsoon and tropicalmonsoon respectively.The former rain belt is mainly formed by the convergence of cold air and therecurred southwesterly flow from western part of subtropical high and westerly flow from the so-called western trough of subtropical region occurring during winter to spring over South Asia.Thelatter is formed in the process of subtropical monsoon rain belt over inshore regions of South ChinaSea originally coming from south of Changjiang (Yangtze) River Basin advancing with northwardshift of subtropical high after the onset of tropical monsoon over South China Sea.The pre-floodrainy season over South China region then came into mature period and the second peak of rainfallappeared.Meiyu,the rainy season over Changjiang-Huaihe River Basin and North China thenformed consequently.The process of summer tropical monsoon onset over South China Sea in 1998is also discussed in this paper.It indicated that the monsoon during summer tropical monsoononset over South China Sea is the result of the westerly flow over middle part of South China Sea,which is from the new generated cyclone formed in north subtropical high entering into SouthChina Sea,converged with the tropical southwesterly flow recurred by the intensified cross-equatorial flow.     

Influence of the Mascarene High and Australian High on the Summer Monsoon in East Asia： Ensemble Simulation

By using a nine-level atmospheric general circulation model developed at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP 9L AGCM), two sets of numerical experiments are carried out to investigate the influence of the Mascarene high (MH) and Australian high (AH) over the southern subtropics upon the East Asian summer monsoon circulation and summer precipitation in East Asia. The use of ensemble statistics is adopted to reduce the simulation errors. The result shows that with the intensification of MH, the Somali low-level jet is significantly enhanced together with the summer monsoon circulation in the tropical Asia and western Pacific region. Furthermore, the anticyclonic anomaly in the tropical western Pacific to the east of the Philippines may induce a weak East-Asia-Pacific teleconnection pattern. In the meantime,geopotential height in the Tropics is enhanced while it is reduced over most regions of mid-high latitudes,thus the northwestern Pacific subtropical high at 500 hPa extends southwestward, resulting in more rainfall in southern China and less rainfall in northern China. A similar anomaly pattern of the atmospheric circulation systems is found in the experiment of the intensification of AH. On the other hand, because the cross-equatorial currents associated with AH are much weaker than the Somali jet, the anomaly magnitude caused by the intensification of AH is generally weak, and the influence of AH on summer rainfall in China seems to be localized in southern China. Comparison between the two sets of experiments indicates that MH plays a crucial role in the interactions of general atmospheric circulation between the two hemispheres.     

Analysis of Basic Features of the Onset of the Asian Summer Monsoon

In this paper,a relatively systematic climatological research on the onset of the Asian tropical summer monsoon(ATSM)was carried out.Based on a unified index of the ATSM onset,the advance of the whole ATSM was newly made and then the view that the ATSM firstly breaks out over the tropical eastern Indian Ocean and the middle and southern Indo-China Peninsula was further documented,which was in the 26th pentad(about May 10),then over the South China Sea(SCS)in the 28th pentad.It seems that the ATSM onset over the two regions belongs to the different stages of the same monsoon system.Then,the onset mechanism of ATSM was further investigated by the comprehensive analysis on the land-sea thermodynamic contrast,intraseasonal oscillation,and so on,and the several key factors which influence the ATSM onset were put forward.Based on these results,a possible climatological schematic map that the ATSM firstly breaks out over the tropical eastern Indian Ocean,the Indo-China Peninsula,and the SCS was also presented, namely seasonal evolution of the atmospheric circulation was the background of the monsoon onset;the enhancement and northward advance of the convections,the sensible heating and latent heating over the Indo-China Peninsula and its neighboring areas,the dramatic deepening of the India-Burma trough,and the westerly warm advection over the eastern Tibetan Plateau were the major driving forces of the summer monsoon onset,which made the meridional gradient of the temperature firstly reverse over this region and ascending motion develop.Then the tropical monsoon and precipitation rapidly developed and enhanced. The phase-lock of the 30-60-day and 10-20-day low frequency oscillations originated from different sources was another triggering factor for the summer monsoon onset.It was just the common effect of these factors that induced the ATSM earliest onset over this region.     

Atmospheric circulation characteristics associated with the onset of Asian summer monsoon

The onset of the Asian summer monsoon has been a focus in the monsoon study for many years. In this paper, we study the variability and predictability of the Asian summer monsoon onset and demonstrate that this onset is associated with specific atmospheric circulation characteristics. The outbreak of the Asian summer monsoon is found to occur first over the southwestern part of the South China Sea (SCS) and the Malay Peninsula region, and the monsoon onset is closely related to intra-seasonal oscillations in the lower atmosphere. These intra-seasonal oscillations consist of two low-frequency vortex pairs, one located to the east of the Philippines and the other over the tropical eastern Indian Ocean. Prior to the Asian summer monsoon onset, a strong low-frequency westerly emerges over the equatorial Indian Ocean and the low-frequency vortex pair develops symmetrically along the equator. The formation and evolution of these low-frequency vortices are important and serve as a good indicator for the Asian summer monsoon onset. The relationship between the northward jumps of the westerly jet over East Asia and the Asian summer monsoon onset over SCS is investigated. It is shown that the northward jump of the westerly jet occurs twice during the transition from winter to summer and these jumps are closely related to the summer monsoon development. The first northward jump (from 25–28N to around 30N) occurs on 8 May on average, about 7 days ahead of the summer monsoon onset over the SCS. It is found that the reverse of meridional temperature gradient in the upper-middle troposphere (500–200 hPa) and the enhancement and northward movement of the subtropical jet in the Southern Hemispheric subtropics are responsible for the first northward jump of the westerly jet.     

COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTS OF ANOMALOUS CONVECTIVE ACTIVITIES IN THE TROPICAL WESTERN PACIFIC ON TWO PERSISTENT HEAVY RAIN EVENTS IN SOUTH CHINA

The different effects of anomalous convective activities in the tropical western Pacific on two persistent heavy rain events in South China in 2005 and 2006 have been compared in this study. The dataused consist of NOAA Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR) data, the NCEP-NCAR reanalysis and precipitation from meteorological stations in South China. Results show that the persistent heavy rain in 2005 was related to the 10-25-day westward propagation of convective activities in the tropical western Pacific from about 150 °E. The physical mechanism is interpreted as a Gill-type response of subtropical anticyclone westward extension during weak convective activities period over the Philippine Sea. Our researches also show that the persistent heavy rain in 2006 has longer period than that in 2005, and the subtropical anticyclone persists westward in the earlier summer which is possibly related to the lasting anomalous strong convective motion in the southern branch of Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the tropic western Pacific. The anomalous convective activities affect the local Hadley circulation over the western Pacific with anomalous ascending motion south of the equator and anomalous descend motion north of it, in favor of the westward extension of the subtropical anticyclone for a long time. Comparison between the two persistent heavy rain events indicates different physical effects of convective activities in the tropical western Pacific, though both effects are helpful to the subtropical anticyclone westward extension as a common character of large-scale circulation backgrounds for persistent heavy rain events in South China.     

Boreal Summer Intraseasonal Oscillation and Its Possible Impact on Precipitation over Southern China in 2019

Based on daily precipitation observation data in China, the intraseasonal oscillation(ISO) features of summer precipitation over southern China in 2019 have been investigated by wavelet and band-pass filtering analyses. The results show that enhanced(suppressed) precipitation occurred over southern China during early(late) boreal summer2019. The signals of both 10–20-and 30–60-day ISO in southern China are remarkable, with the amplitude of the10–20-day ISO larger than the 30–60-day ISO in boreal summer 2019. The synergistic effect of the 10–20-and 30–60-day ISO wet phases was found to exert a tremendous influence on persistent heavy precipitation in July 2019,when the amount of precipitation reached its maximum in southern China since 1981. The atmospheric circulation and convection evolution characteristics of both 10–20-and 30–60-day ISO are further investigated. An anomalous low-level anticyclone over the South China Sea is prominently linked to the wet phase of the 10–20-day ISO, whereas an anomalous low-level cyclone over southern China is dominantly associated with the wet phase of the 30–60-day ISO. Both events enhance the water vapor convergence and ascending motion over southern China. Thus, the atmospheric circulation that accompanied the synergism of the wet phases of the 10–20-and 30–60-day ISO resulted in persistent heavy precipitation over southern China in July 2019.     

Comparison of the multi-scale features in two persistent heavy rainfall events in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River

Two persistent heavy rainfall(PHR) events in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River(MLYR)occurring in June 1982 and 1998 are studied in this paper.Though both events happened in the Meiyu season,their large-scale background and developing processes were quite different.During the PHR event in 1982,the Lake Baikal area was occupied by a strong westerly trough and the western Pacific subtropical high(WPSH) was stronger and more westward-extending than the normal years.Under such a condition,the cold dry air and warm moist air were continuously transported to the MLYR and favored the PHR there.For the event in 1998,the WPSH was similar to that in 1982,while the westerly trough in the Lake Baikal area was comparatively weak and a shortwave trough situating in East China contributed to advect cold dry air to the MLYR.It is found that the high-latitude trough was closely related to the 1030-day low-frequency oscillation while the anomaly of WPSH was linked with the combined effect of both30 60- and 10 30-day low-frequency oscillations in the PHR event in 1982.By contrast,the 60-day low-pass perturbation demonstrated positive impact on the westward extension of WPSH and development of the Baikal trough while the 30 60-day oscillation played a role in strengthening the shortwave trough in East China and the WPSH in the case of 1998.Though the low-latitude 30 60-day oscillations contributed to the intensification and westward extension of the WPSH in both PHR events,their evolution exhibited evident differences.In the 1982 case,the 30 60-day anomalies originated from the western Indian Ocean were much more like the Madden Julian Oscillation,while its counterpart in the 1998 case was much more similar to the first mode of the boreal summer intraseasonal oscillation.     

IMPACTS OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF ENSO ON LANDFALLING TROPICAL CYCLONES IN CHINA

Interannual variability of landfalling tropical cyclones(TCs) in China during 1960-2010 is investigated.By using the method of partial least squares regression(PLS-regression),canonical ENSO and ENSO Modoki are identified to be the factors that contribute to the interannual variability of landfalling TCs.El Ni o Modoki years are associated with a greater-than-average frequency of landfalling TCs in China,but reversed in canonical El Ni o years.Significant difference in genesis locations of landfalling TCs in China for the two kinds of El Ni o phases occurs dominantly in the northern tropical western North Pacific(WNP).The patterns of low-level circulation anomalies and outgoing longwave radiation(OLR) anomalies associated with landfalling TC genesis with different types of El Ni o phases are examined.During canonical El Ni o years,a broad zonal band of positive OLR anomalies dominates the tropical WNP,while the circulation anomalies exhibit a meridionally symmetrical dipole pattern with an anticyclonic anomaly in the subtropics and a cyclonic anomaly near the tropics.In El Ni o Modoki years,a vast region of negative OLR anomalies,roughly to the south of 25°N with a strong large-scale cyclonic anomaly over the tropical WNP,provides a more favorable condition for landfalling TC genesis compared to its counterpart during canonical El Ni o years.For more landfalling TCs formed in the northern tropical WNP in El Ni o Modoki years,there are more TCs making landfall on the northern coast of China in El Ni o Modoki years than in canonical El Ni o years.The number of landfalling TCs is slightly above normal in canonical La Ni a years.Enhanced convection is found in the South China Sea(SCS) and the west of the tropical WNP,which results in landfalling TCs forming more westward in canonical La Ni a years.During La Ni a Modoki years,the landfalling TC frequency are below normal,owing to an unfavorable condition for TC genesis persisting in a broad zonal band from 5°N to 25°N.Since the western North Pacific subtropical high(WNPSH) in La Ni a Modoki years is located in the westernmost region,TCs mainly make landfall on the south coast of China.     

ANOMALOUS VARIATIONS OF GUANGDONG PRECIPITATION IN SUMMER IN RELATION TO MONSOON

The relationship between the variation of precipitation in Guangdong Province is investigated using the correlation analysis and composite comparison methods in conjunction with precipitation data from 36 surface weather stations in the province and reanalyzed 850 hPa data from NCEP, U.S.A. A significant positive correlation is found between the variation of precipitation in summer there and the intensity of the southwesterly over the South China Sea though without being so inconclusive that a strong southwesterly over the sea is accompanied by more rain in Guangdong. For the front-associated flood season in April-June, the former is a carrier of rainwater for Guangdong but with insignificant linkage with the intensity of the southwest monsoon. There is even such a situation in which the precipitation gets stronger though with a weakened southwest monsoon from the tropics in May-June, which is mainly attributable to the increase of monsoon from the subtropics. For the typhoon-associated flood season in July-September, the Guangdong precipitation increases as the southwest monsoon strengthens over the central and northern South China Sea and the subtropical monsoon reduces its effects on the province.     

Impacts of 30-60-Day Oscillations over the Subtropical Pacific on the East Asian Summer Rainfall

The relationships between the precipitation over East Asia (20°-45°N,110°-135°E) and the 30-60-day intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) over the Pacific during the boreal summer are studied in the paper.The daily wind and height fields of NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data,the 24-h precipitation data of 687 stations in China during 1958-2000,and the pentad precipitation of CMAP/NOAA from 1979 to 2002 are all analyzed by the space-time filter method.The analysis results,from every drought and flood summer in four different regions of East Asia respectively during 1958-2000,have shown that the flood (drought) in the East Asian summer monsoon region is absolutely companied with the strongly (weakly) westward propagations of ISO from the central-east Pacific,and depends little on the intensity changes of the East Asian summer monsoon. And the westward ISO is usually the low-frequency cyclones and anticyclones from the Bay of Alaska in northeastern Pacific and the Okhotsk in the northwestern Pacific of mid-high latitudes,and the ISO evolving in subtropical easterlies.In mid-high latitudes the phenomena are related to the westward propagating mid- ocean trough and the retreat of blocking high.Therefore the westward propagating ISO from the central-east Pacific to East Asia is indispensable for more rainfall occurring in East Asia in summer,which results from the long-wave adjustment process in the mid-high latitudes and ISO evolving in tropical easterlies.     

Low-frequency oscillations of the East Asia–Pacific teleconnection pattern and their impacts on persistent heavy precipitation in the Yangtze–Huai River valley

Based on the daily reanalysis data from NCEP NCAR and daily precipitation data from the China National Meteorological Information Center,an ensemble empirical mode decomposition method is employed to extract the predominant oscillation modes of the East Asia Pacific(EAP) teleconnection pattern.The influences of these low-frequency modes on persistent heavy precipitation in the Yangtze Huai River(YHR)valley are investigated.The results indicate that the EAP pattern and rainfall in YHR valley both exhibit remarkable 10 30- and 30 60-day oscillations.The impacts of the EAP pattern on the YHR persistent heavy precipitation can be found on both the 10 30- and 30 60-day timescales the 10 30-day scale for most cases.Composite analysis indicates that,on the 10 30-day timescale,formation of the EAP pattern in the lower and middle troposphere is determined by convective systems near the tropical western Pacific;whereas in the middle troposphere,the phase transition is jointly contributed by both the dispersion of zonal wave energies at higher latitudes and convective systems over the South China Sea.In the context of the10 30-day EAP pattern,the anomalously abundant moisture is transported by an anomalous subtropical anticyclone system,and strong moisture convergence results from that anomalous anticyclone system and a cyclonic system in the midlatitude East Asia.Such a combination of systems persists for at least three days,contributing to the formation of persistent heavy precipitation in the YHR valley.     

Predicting Western Pacific Subtropical High Using a Combined Tropical Indian Ocean Sea Surface Temperature Forecast

Weather and climate in East China are closely related to the variability of the western Pacific subtropical high（WPSH）, which is an important part of the Asian monsoon system. The WPSH prediction in spring and summer is a critical component of rainfall forecasting during the summer flood season in China. Although many attempts have been made to predict WPSH variability, its predictability remains limited in practice due to the complexity of the WPSH evolution. Many studies have indicated that the sea surface temperature（SST） over the tropical Indian Ocean has a significant effect on WPSH variability. In this paper, a statistical model is developed to forecast the monthly variation in the WPSH during the spring and summer seasons on the basis of its relationship with SST over the tropical Indian Ocean. The forecasted SST over the tropical Indian Ocean is the predictor in this model, which differs significantly from other WPSH prediction methods. A 26-year independent hindcast experiment from 1983 to 2008 is conducted and validated in which the WPSH prediction driven by the combined forecasted SST is compared with that driven by the persisted SST. Results indicate that the skill score of the WPSH prediction driven by the combined forecasted SST is substantial.     

DIAGNOSTIC STUDY FOR INTRASEASONAL OSCILLATION OF THE MIDDLE-HIGH LATITUDES IN A LOW RESOLUTION GLOBAL SPECTRAL MODEL

In this paper, five-year simulated data from a low-resolution global spectral model with triangular trunca-lion at wavenumber 10 are analyzed in order to study dynamical features and propagation characteristics ofintraseasonal oxillations over the mid-latitudes and the tropical atmosphere. The simulations show that thereis the 30-50 day periodic oscillation in the low-resolution spectral model without non-seasonal external forcing,and spatial scale of the intraseasonal oscihations is of the globe .Further analysis finds that propagation charac-ters of intraseasonal oscillations over the mid-latitudes and the tropics are different. The 30-50 day oscillationover the tropics exhibits structure of the velocity potential wave with wavenumber 1 in the latitudinal and thecharacter of the traveling wave eastward at speed of 8 longitudes/day. However, the 30-50 day oscillationsin mid-latitude atmosphere exhibit phase and amplitude oscillation of the standing planetary waves and theyare related to transform of teleconnection patterns over the mid-latitudes. The energy is not only transferredbetween the tropics and the middle-high latitudes, but also between different regions over the tropics. Based on the analysis of 5-year band pass filtered data from a 5-layer global spectral model of Jow-ordetwith truncated wavenumber l0,investigation is done of the source of intraseasonal oscillations in the extratropicalmodel atmosphere and its mechanism. Results show that (1) the convective heat transferred eastward alongthe equator serves as the source of the intraseasonal oxillation both in the tropical and the extratropical atmos--phere; (2) the velocity-potential wave of a zonal structure of wavenumber 1 gives rise to oxillation in divergentand convergent wind fields of a dipole-form as seen from the equatorial Indian Ocean to the western Pacificduring its eastward propagation, thus indicating the oscillation in the dipole-form heat soure:e/sink pattertl; (3)the tropical heat-source oscillation is responsible for the variation in phase and intensity of the extratropicalstationary wave train, and the interaction between the oscillating low-frequency inertial gravity and stationaryRossby modes that are probably mechanisms for the oscillations ip the middle-high latitudes.     

Spring Indian Ocean-western Pacific SST contrast and the East Asian summer rainfall anomaly

studying the relationship between SST in the tropical Indian Ocean （TIO）, tropical western Pacific （TWP）, and tropical eastern Pacific （TEP） and East Asian summer rainfall （EASR）, using data provided by NOAA/OAR/ESRL PSD and the National Climate Center of China for the period 1979-2008, an index, SSTDI, was defined to describe the SST difference between the TIO and TWP. In comparison with the winter ENSO, the spring SST contrast between the TIO and TWP was found to be more significantly associated with summer rainfall in East Asia, especially along the EASR band and in Northeast China. This spring SST contrast can persist into summer, resulting in a more significant meridional teleconnection pattern of lower-tropospheric circulation anomalies over the western North Pacific and East Asia. These circulation anomalies are dynamically consistent with the summer rainfall anomaly along the EASR band. When the SSTDI is higher （lower） than normal, the EASR over the Yangtze River valley, Korea, and central and southern Japan is heavier （less） than normal. The present results suggest that this spring SST contrast can be used as a new and better predictor of EASR anomalies.     

The Summer Snow Cover Anomaly over the Tibetan Plateau and Its Association with Simultaneous Precipitation over the Mei-yu–Baiu region

The summer snow anomalies over the Tibetan Plateau （TP） and their effects on climate variability are often overlooked,possibly due to the fact that some datasets cannot properly capture summer snow cover over high terrain.The satellite-derived Equal-Area Scalable Earth grid （EASE-grid） dataset shows that snow still exists in summer in the western part and along the southem flank of the TP.Analysis demonstrates that the summer snow cover area proportion （SCAP） over the TP has a significant positive correlation with simultaneous precipitation over the mei-yu-baiu （MB） region on the interannual time scale.The close relationship between the summer SCAP and summer precipitation over the MB region could not be simply considered as a simultaneous response to the Silk Road pattern and the SST anomalies in the tropical Indian Ocean and tropical central-eastern Pacific.The SCAP anomaly has an independent effect and may directly modulate the land surface heating and,consequently,vertical motion over the western TP,and concurrently induce anomalous vertical motion over the North Indian Ocean via a meridional vertical circulation.Through a zonal vertical circulation over the tropics and a Kelvin wave-type response,anomalous vertical motion over the North Indian Ocean may result in an anomalous high over the western North Pacific and modulate the convective activity in the western Pacific warm pool,which stimulates the East Asia-Pacific （EAP） pattern and eventually affects summer precipitation over the MB region.     

COMPARISON STUDY ON THE INTRASEASONAL VARIATIONS IN CIRCULATIONS AND PRECIPITATION MODULATED BY THE TROPICAL CYCLOGENESIS OVER SOUTH CHINA SEA–WESTERN PACIFIC DURING GUANGDONG FLOODING PERIOD

Based on tropical cyclone datasets from Shanghai Typhoon Institute of China Meteorological Administration, the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP, USA) reanalysis data and the rainfall records from 743 stations in China, the impacts of cyclogenesis number over the South China Sea and the western Pacific are studied on the 30-60-day oscillations in the precipitation of Guangdong during the flooding period. The year with more-than-normal (less-than-normal) tropical cyclogenesis is defined as a ‘high year’ (‘low year’). In light of the irregular periodic oscillations, the method used to construct the composite life cycle is based on nine consecutive phases in each of the cycles. Phases 1, 3, 5, and 7 correspond to, respectively, the time when precipitation anomalies reach the minimum, a positive transition (negative-turning-to-positive) phase, the maximum, and a negative transition phase. The results showed that the precipitation of the 30-60-day oscillations is associated with the interaction between a well-organized eastward propagation system from the Arabian Sea/Bay of Bengal and a westward-propagating system (with cyclonic and anticyclonic anomalies in the northwest-southeast direction) from the South China Sea to western Pacific during the high years, whereas the precipitation is affected during a low year by the circulation over the South China Sea and western Pacific (with cyclonic and anticyclonic anomalies in the northeast-southwest direction). During the high year, the warm and wet air mass from the ocean to the west and south are transported to Guangdong by westerly anomalies and an enclosed latitudinal cell, which ascends in the Northern Hemisphere low latitudes and descends in the Southern Hemisphere low latitudes. During the low year, the warm and wet air mass from the ocean to the south is transported to Guangdong by southwesterly wind anomalies and local ascending movements. Because the kinetic energy, westerly, easterly shift, vertical velocity and vapor transportation averaged over (109–119° E, 10–20° N) is stronger in high years than those in low years, the precipitation of the 30-60-day oscillations in Guangdong is higher in high years than that in low years.