东亚冬季风年际变化的ENSO信息 I. 观测资料分析

利用1950～1989年40年的全球月平均资料,详细讨论了东亚冬季风的年际变化特征,分析结果表明东亚冬季风年际变化中包含有明显的ENSO信号,也就是说东亚冬季风活动与ENSO的发生有明显的关系,大多数El Ni?o事件爆发后东亚冬季风偏弱,而大多数La Ni?a爆发后东亚冬季风偏强。通过对这40年间的10次El Ni?o和7次La Ni?a事件的合成分析,结果表明El Ni?o冬半年东亚500 hPa位势高度为正距平、海平面气压为负距平,即东亚冬季风偏弱,阿留申及北美地区呈现出明显的类似PNA型的异常环流形势;La Ni?a冬半年东亚以至于北半球大气环流异常形势与El Ni?o的相反。同时资料分析也表明,在大多数El Ni?o（La Ni?a）爆发前东亚冬季风偏强（弱）。另外,功率谱分析结果表明,东亚冬季风有显著的3～5年和准2年的变化周期,这从另一方面说明了东亚冬季风的年际异常中包含有显著的ENSO信息。     

东亚冬季风对ENSO事件的响应特征

基于美国NOAA在ENSO诊断分析中使用的海洋Ni?o指数 （Oceanic Ni?o Index, 简称ONI）,将1950～2005年冬季分成强El Ni?o、强La Ni?a、弱El Ni?o、弱La Ni?a和没有发生ENSO事件5类,用分类合成方法研究了冬季东亚大气环流对ENSO事件的响应。结果表明,在低纬度,大气环流对ENSO事件的响应具有较明显的准线性特征,即大气对海洋暖事件与冷事件的响应大致是反位相的,对弱ENSO事件的响应与强ENSO事件相似但强度较弱。中高纬度大气环流与ENSO事件也有一定的联系,但同等强度暖事件与冷事件下大气环流距平场上的系统分布没有呈现明显的反位相,表明大气对海温异常的响应是复杂的。强El Ni?o事件时大气的响应信号显著,主要表现在东亚中高纬西风气流增强, 亚洲北部地区气温偏高,距平风场上的切变线从长江中下游向东伸展,菲律宾海距平反气旋西北侧的偏南气流和南支槽前西南气流加强,其共同作用使南海和中国东南沿海出现显著的偏南风距平;强La Nia事件时,长江中下游向东伸展的脊线不明显,中国南方至南海处于偏北风距平区,但通过统计检验的范围减小;弱El Ni?o事件时,菲律宾海距平反气旋西北侧的西南气流偏东,与南支槽前西南气流分开,使得华南和南海的偏南风距平没有强El Ni?o时显著; 弱La Ni?a事件时,西风带纬向气流减弱,亚洲北部地区气温偏低。对ONI指数与亚洲北部温度指数（NTI）的散点图的分析显示,9个强El Ni?o冬季中有8年亚洲北部温度距平偏高,7个弱El Ni?o冬季中只有1年温度偏高;8个强La Ni?a冬季有4年温度偏低,12个弱La Ni?a冬季中有11年温度偏低;亚洲强暖冬和强冷冬的发生与ENSO事件的联系不紧密。     

1980—2016年西太平洋暖池与ENSO循环过程的相关分析

利用1980—2016年海表温度(SST)、海平面气压场（SLP）、南方涛动指数（SOI）、平均海洋尼诺指数（ONI）等资料对近37 a发生的ENSO（El Nio-Southern Oscillation）事件进行统计分析,并用经验正交函数分析法以及小波分析方法研究西太平洋暖池与ENSO循环过程之间的作用机制。研究表明：近37 a来,Nino3.4区的SST在厄尔尼诺（El Nio）现象发生时存在较大的正距平,采用Nino3.4区SSTA的大幅度突变作为指标,能够更好地反映El Nio事件的发生;El Nio事件合成分析可知其形成过程中,西太平洋有一逐渐增强东移的暖中心;西太暖池东边界变化具有明显的年际变化特征,平均3～4 a经历一次循环,并出现变化周期延长的现象;海表温度的EOF能很好地预示ENSO的发生;通过小波分析可以看出暖池东边界对ENSO的发生有较好的预报意义。     

副热带北太平洋SST在ENSO冷暖位相转变中的作用

2015/2016年发生的极端El Ni?o事件,与1997/1998年El Ni?o事件具有可比拟的强度,但是2016年事件转变为弱La Ni?a,而1998年事件则为强La Ni?a。本文通过对比这两次极端El Ni?o事件,揭示其转变为不同强度La Ni?a事件的物理机制。混合层热收支分析的结果表明,在El Ni?o衰减年的4~11月,2016年平流反馈和温跃层反馈相对较弱,混合层温度衰减速率慢,其产生的主要原因是赤道中西太平洋的东风异常较弱。进一步分析表明,赤道中西太平洋的东风异常与副热带东北太平洋的海表温度异常（SSTA）有关,该地区的SST在1998年表现为冷异常,2016年为暖异常。副热带东北太平洋冷的SSTA有利于信风加强,从而加强中西太平洋的东风异常;而暖的SSTA使得赤道以北出现西南风异常,从而削弱中西太平洋的东风异常。此外,合成分析也表明,副热带东北太平洋SSTA与转变的La Ni?a的强度具有关联,El Ni?o转变为强La Ni?a的情况在位相转变期伴随着副热带北太平洋冷的SSTA,而El Ni?o转变为弱La Ni?a的情况没有明显的冷SSTA。     

两类ENSO背景下中国东部夏季降水的环流特征及关键系统

利用全国160站逐月降水资料、74项环流指数、HadISST月平均海温资料以及NCEP/NCAR月平均再分析资料,对比分析了两类ENSO事件衰减阶段中国东部夏季降水及相应大气环流的差异,并探讨其可能成因。结果表明:1)EP型El Ni?o(La Ni?a)事件次年夏季,中国东部降水由北至南呈正负正(负正负)的三极型反相分布;CP型El Ni?o(La Ni?a)事件次年夏季,中国东部降水由北至南呈正负(负正)的偶极型反相分布;2)El Ni?o事件次年夏季,西北太平洋副热带高压(以下简称西太副高)及南亚高压均偏强,EP型西太副高偏西、南亚高压偏东,CP型西太副高范围更大、强度更强;La Ni?a事件次年夏季,西太副高及南亚高压强度偏弱,CP型强于EP型但弱于气候平均;3)El Ni?o事件期间西北太平洋上存在异常反气旋,EP型位置偏南,强度更强,持续时间更长,CP型位置偏北,范围更大;La Ni?a事件期间,西北太平洋区域至中国东南部存在异常气旋,EP型异常气旋的强度及范围均不及CP型;4)两类El Ni?o事件期间异常反气旋的差异可能与印度洋海盆增暖及太平洋海温持续性偏冷有关;两类La Ni?a事件期间异常气旋的差异可能由赤道西太平洋海温持续偏暖造成。     

ENSO事件对川西高原区的气候影响

根据1951-2010年川西高原区7个气象站降水资料和气温资料以及60 a间发生的厄尔尼诺(El Ni?o)/拉尼娜(La Ni?a)事件,分析降水量、气温与El Ni?o /La Ni?a事件之间的关系,研究El Ni?o/La Ni?a事件对川西高原区气候的影响。结果表明：1951年以来川西高原区年降水量变化不大,呈现微弱的增加趋势,El Ni?o/La Ni?a 事件的发生对川西高原区年平均降水量有影响,El Ni?o事件影响下的年平均降水量减少,La Ni?a事件影响下的年平均降水量增加;El Ni?o年降水量低于正常年降水量39.14 mm,拉尼娜年降水量高于正常年降水量22.56 mm。1951年以来川西高原区年平均气温呈现微弱的波动上升趋势,川西高原区年平均气温与ENSO事件等级之间的相关性不显著。     

两个典型ENSO季节演变模态及其与我国东部降水的联系

本文根据1950~2014年月平均海温和大气环流资料以及中国160站降水等资料,利用扩展经验正交函数（EEOF）分析、相关分析以及合成分析等方法,分析了太平洋海温季节演变的主导模态,并探讨了各模态与中国东部降水和东亚环流季节变异的关系及其联系的物理过程。结果表明,ENSO（El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation）季节演变存在2个主导模态,包含4种类型:El Ni?o持续型、La Ni?a持续型、La Ni?a转El Ni?o型和El Ni?o转La Ni?a型。发现不同模态和类型的ENSO季节变化过程我国东部降水距平的分布和强度都有明显差异。El Ni?o持续型和El Ni?o转La Ni?a型,冬春季和初夏均处在El Ni?o背景下,降水异常分布存在一定共性,但盛夏和秋季分别受El Ni?o和La Ni?a影响,降水异常分布差异十分明显,前者雨带北跳慢、位置偏南而后者雨带北跳快、位置偏北。La Ni?a持续型和La Ni?a转El Ni?o型也是如此,冬春季和初夏降水异常分布大致相似,但盛夏和秋季分别受La Ni?a和El Ni?o影响,前者雨带北跳快、位置偏北而后者雨带北跳慢、位置偏南。因此,利用ENSO做我国降水的气候预测时,不能只着眼于前期冬季El Ni?o或La Ni?a事件,还应考虑其未来演变所属的可能模态和类型。对他们之间联系的物理过程分析表明,不同ENSO季节演变模态和类型主要通过影响西太平洋副热带高压以及西风带经向型/纬向型环流调整及伴随的低纬暖湿水汽输送以及中高纬冷空气活动变化来影响我国东部降水。其中,西太平洋菲律宾群岛附近异常反气旋（或气旋）、赤道Walker环流和北半球Hadley环流分别是联系ENSO与西太平洋副热带高压活动和东亚西风带经向型/纬向型环流的重要环节。     

热带太平洋盐度年际变化对海表温度异常作用比较：1997/1998、2014/2015和2015/2016年El Niño事件

海洋盐度变化为研究气候变化的机制提供了一个新的视角。本文通过对比1997/1998年、2015/2016年两次强厄尔尼诺（El Ni?o）事件和2014/2015年特殊El Ni?o事件,对盐度变化及其影响海表面温度异常（SSTA）的物理过程进行了比较分析。研究表明,El Ni?o和南方涛动（El Ni?o–Southern Oscillation, ENSO）发展的强弱与热带西太平洋大范围海表层盐度异常（SSSA）及其向东扩散的差异有明显关联。1997/1998、2015/2016年赤道东太平洋SSTA的增暖,对应两次强El Ni?o事件,在发生年4月,中西太平洋海域出现了明显的负SSSA,之后东移至日期变更线以西,SSSA引发的混合层深度（MLD）变浅、障碍层厚度（BLT）变厚,导致热带中—西太平洋表层升温增强,促使了赤道中太平洋的早期变暖;2014/2015年弱El Ni?o事件虽然在发生年4月,位于赤道中西太平洋出现了负SSSA,但没有发展东移,导致BLT的增厚过程减弱,对表层温度的调制作用减弱甚至消失。三次事件对应的盐度变化过程中,水平平流和淡水通量（FWF）引起的表层强迫是影响盐度收支的主要因子,水平平流影响盐度异常的前期变化,触发事件的发生;热带太平洋西部降水引起的FWF负异常的影响最为显著,对ENSO异常信号出现后SSSA的维持起决定性作用。相比较两次强El Ni?o事件,2014/2015年El Ni?o对应的早期FWF负异常没有发展和东移,并且之后迅速减弱,导致中西太平洋盐度负趋势减缓,MLD加深,BLT变薄,促使上表层海水冷却,抑制了赤道东太平洋的早期变暖和ENSO发展。研究结果表明,盐度变化与ENSO密切相关,热带中西太平洋海域早期表层盐度变化可能可以作为SSTA的指数。特别地,SSSA在调节SSTA时,不仅影响它的强度,而且可以作为判断ENSO是否发展及其强弱的前兆因子。     

厄尔尼诺/南方涛动事件对云南秋季气象干旱的不同影响分析

云南是我国干旱灾害高发区,为增进厄尔尼诺/南方涛动（El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation,ENSO）对云南干旱影响的认知,提升云南秋季气象干旱预测能力,采用1979—2022年云南125个气象站逐日降水资料、英国国家气象局哈德莱中心（Hadley Center）逐月海表温度（Sea Surface Temperature,SST）资料及欧洲中期天气预报中心（European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts,ECMWF）第五代再分析资料（the Fifth Generation of European Reanalysis,ERA5）,揭示两类ENSO事件对导致云南秋季气象干旱的降水异常影响及相应的物理过程。结果表明：（1）中部（Central Pacific,CP）型El Ni?o或La Ni?a事件同期,云南秋季降水以偏少为主;东部（Eastern Pacific,EP）型El Ni?o或La Ni?a事件同期,云南秋季降水则以偏多为主,且EP型El Ni?o是云南秋季降水偏多的强信号。（2）EP型El Ni?o...     

ENSO发展和衰减阶段的陕西夏季降水异常特征

利用1961—2008年陕西78个气象站夏季 (6—8月) 降水资料、NCEP/NCAR位势高度场和风场月平均再分析资料,采用合成及相关分析方法探讨ENSO发展和衰减阶段对陕西夏季降水异常的影响,以期为陕西夏季降水的气候预测提供线索和依据。结果表明:陕西夏季降水异常对ENSO发展和衰减阶段的响应存在显著差异,El Ni?o发展阶段和La Ni?a衰减阶段,陕西夏季降水偏少; El Ni?o衰减阶段和La Ni?a发展阶段,陕西夏季降水偏多; ENSO不同阶段对陕西7月降水影响最为显著。比较而言,El Ni?o事件对陕西夏季降水的影响更加显著。在El Ni?o衰减、La Ni?a发展阶段,西太平洋副热带高压偏强、偏西,东亚夏季风偏弱,而在El Ni?o发展、La Ni?a衰减阶段,西太平洋副热带高压偏弱、偏东,东亚夏季风偏强,El Ni?o过程对东亚夏季风强弱的影响更加显著。ENSO发展和衰减阶段通过影响大气环流变化和东亚夏季风的强弱,进而影响陕西夏季降水。     

Decadal Changes in Interannual Dependence of the Bay of Bengal Summer Monsoon Onset on ENSO Modulated by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation

Interannual variations of the Bay of Bengal summer monsoon (BOBSM) onset in association with El Ni?o?Southern Oscillation (ENSO) are reexamined using NCEP1, JRA-55 and ERA20C atmospheric and Hadley sea surface temperature (SST) reanalysis datasets over the period 1900?2017. Decadal changes exist in the dependence of the BOBSM onset on ENSO, varying with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). A higher correlation between the BOBSM onset and ENSO arises during the warm PDO epochs, with distinct late (early) onsets following El Ni?o (La Ni?a) events. In contrast, less significant correlations occur during the cold PDO epochs. The mechanism for the PDO modulating the ENSO?BOBSM onset relationship is through the variations in SST anomaly (SSTA) patterns. During the warm PDO epochs, the superimpositions of the PDO-related and ENSO-related SSTAs lead to the SSTA distribution of an El Ni?o (La Ni?a) event exhibiting significant positive (negative) SSTAs over the tropical central?eastern Pacific and Indian Ocean along with negative (positive) SSTAs, especially over the tropical western Pacific (TWP), forming a strong zonal interoceanic SSTA gradient between the TWP and tropical Indian Ocean. Significant anomalous lower tropospheric easterlies (westerlies) together with upper-tropospheric westerlies (easterlies) are thus induced over the BOB, favoring an abnormally late (early) BOBSM onset. During the cold PDO epochs, however, the superimpositions of PDO-related SSTAs with El Ni?o-related (La Ni?a-related) SSTAs lead to insignificant SSTAs over the TWP and a weak zonal SSTA gradient, without distinct circulation anomalies over the BOB favoring early or late BOBSM onsets.     

Contrasting Regional Responses of Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall to Exhausted Spring and Concurrently Emerging Summer El Ni?o Events

The inverse relationship between the warm phase of the El Ni?o Southern Oscillation(ENSO) and the Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall(ISMR) is well established. Yet, some El Ni?o events that occur in the early months of the year(boreal spring) transform into a neutral phase before the start of summer, whereas others begin in the boreal summer and persist in a positive phase throughout the summer monsoon season. This study investigates the distinct influences of an exhausted spring El Ni?o(springtime)...     

Pacific and Atlantic influences on Mesoamerican climate over the past millennium

A new tree-ring reconstruction of the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) for Mesoamerica from AD 771 to 2008 identifies megadroughts more severe and sustained than any witnessed during the twentieth century. Correlation analyses indicate strong forcing of instrumental and reconstructed June PDSI over Mesoamerica from the El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Spectral analyses of the 1,238-year reconstruction indicate significant concentrations of variance at ENSO, sub-decadal, bi-decadal, and multidecadal timescales. Instrumental and model-based analyses indicate that the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation is important to warm season climate variability over Mexico. Ocean-atmospheric variability in the Atlantic is not strongly correlated with the June PDSI reconstruction during the instrumental era, but may be responsible for the strong multidecadal variance detected in the reconstruction episodically over the past millennium. June drought indices in Mesoamerica are negatively correlated with gridded June PDSI over the United States from 1950 to 2005, based on both instrumental and reconstructed data. Interannual variability in this latitudinal moisture gradient is due in part to ENSO forcing, where warm events favor wet June PDSI conditions over the southern US and northern Mexico, but dryness over central and southern Mexico (Mesoamerica). Strong anti-phasing between multidecadal regimes of tree-ring reconstructed June PDSI over Mesoamerica and reconstructed summer (JJA) PDSI over the Southwest has also been detected episodically over the past millennium, including the 1950–1960s when La Ni?a and warm Atlantic SSTs prevailed, and the 1980–1990s when El Ni?o and cold Atlantic SSTs prevailed. Several Mesoamerican megadroughts are reconstructed when wetness prevailed over the Southwest, including the early tenth century Terminal Classic Drought, implicating El Ni?o and Atlantic SSTs in this intense and widespread drought that may have contributed to social changes in ancient Mexico.     

THE INFLUENCE OF PERSISTENT ANOMALY OF MJO ON ENSO

In this study, two possible persistent anomalies of the Madden-Julian Oscillation mode (MJO) are found in the summer season (persistently Pacific active and Indian Ocean active), and an index is set to define the intensity of the two modes. They are proved to have high statistical correlations to the later ENSO events in the autumn and winter seasons: When persistent anomaly of MJO happens in the Pacific Ocean in summer, El Ni?o events are often induced during the autumn and winter seasons of that year. However, during the other MJO mode when the summer persistent anomaly of MJO occurs in the Indian Ocean, La Ni?a events often follow instead. The analysis of the atmospheric circulation field indicates that persistent anomaly of MJO can probably affect the entire Equatorial Pacific circulation, and results in wind stress anomalies. The wind stress anomalies could excite warm or cold water masses which propagate eastwards at the subsurface ocean. The accumulation of warm or cold subsurface water in the Equatorial Eastern Pacific Ocean may eventually lead to the formation of an ENSO.     

Interdecadal variability of the relationship between the East Asian winter monsoon and ENSO

Summary The authors examine relationships between the East Asian winter monsoon and the ENSO, particularly on the interdecadal timescales. Based on the analyses of SLP data from 1899 to 1997, the East-Asian winter monsoon index (WMI) is defined as the zonal difference of SLP between ∼120° E and ∼160° E. It is found that 18 out of 28 strong winter monsoon years are either before the development of an El Ni?o or during the decaying La Ni?a event, 12 out of 28 weak winter monsoon are before the development of a La Ni?a or during the decaying El Ni?o event. There is a significant positive correlation coefficient value of about 0.49 between the normalized 11-yr running mean of WMI and ENSO index, however, the WMI-ENSO relationship is not consistently highly correlated. The temporal evolution of correlation between WMI and ENSO indices in both 11-yr and 21-yr moving window shows that the WMI-ENSO relationship clearly undergo low-frequency oscillation. Obviously, both observational and IPSL air-sea coupled modeling WMI index has a near-decadal peak with PDO timescales and internal peaks with ENSO timescales by applying the Multitaper method. Moreover, the cross wavelet and wavelet coherence analysis of WMI/ENSO indicate that there is a larger significant sections with an in phase behavior between WMI and ENSO at period of 20–30 yrs, suggesting that the interdecadal variation of the WMI-ENSO relationship might exist.     

The Optimal Precursors for ENSO Events Depicted Using the Gradientdefinition-based Method in an Intermediate Coupled Model

The predictability of El Ni?o?Southern Oscillation (ENSO) has been an important area of study for years. Searching for the optimal precursor (OPR) of ENSO occurrence is an effective way to understand its predictability. The CNOP (conditional nonlinear optimal perturbation), one of the most effective ways to depict the predictability of ENSO, is adopted to study the optimal sea surface temperature (SST) precursors (SST-OPRs) of ENSO in the IOCAS ICM (intermediate coupled model developed at the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences). To seek the SST-OPRs of ENSO in the ICM, non-ENSO events simulated by the ICM are chosen as the basic state. Then, the gradient-definition-based method (GD method) is employed to solve the CNOP for different initial months of the basic years to obtain the SST-OPRs. The experimental results show that the obtained SST-OPRs present a positive anomaly signal in the western-central equatorial Pacific, and obvious differences exist in the patterns between the different seasonal SST-OPRs along the equatorial western-central Pacific, showing seasonal dependence to some extent. Furthermore, the non-El Ni?o events can eventually evolve into El Ni?o events when the SST-OPRs are superimposed on the corresponding seasons; the peaks of the Ni?o3.4 index occur at the ends of the years, which is consistent with the evolution of the real El Ni?o. These results show that the GD method is an effective way to obtain SST-OPRs for ENSO events in the ICM. Moreover, the OPRs for ENSO depicted using the GD method provide useful information for finding the early signal of ENSO in the ICM.     

North Atlantic Oscillation sensitivity to the El Niño/Southern Oscillation polarity in a large-ensemble simulation

A large ensemble modeling experiment with the Melbourne University General Circulation Model is presented. Thirty 17-year-long independent simulations were performed. All integrations were forced by the same observed sea surface temperatures, obtained from the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project II. The simulations were analyzed to assess the sensitivity of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) to the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) polarity. The results show signals of the ENSO phases both in the mean strength of the NAO as well as in its internal variability. During the cold ENSO phase, the probability density function of the NAO index presents a small but positive mean value, whereas it is negative during the warm ENSO phase. Also, the NAO variability associated with each ENSO phase shows a different behavior: during the warm phase the probability density function of the NAO index presents a larger variance and suggests a bimodality, whereas no bimodality is suggested in the cold phase.     

Southern Hemisphere extra-tropical forcing: a new paradigm for El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation

The main goal of this paper is to shed additional light on the reciprocal dynamical linkages between mid-latitude Southern Hemisphere climate and the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) signal. While our analysis confirms that ENSO is a dominant source of interannual variability in the Southern Hemisphere, it is also suggested here that subtropical dipole variability in both the Southern Indian and Atlantic Oceans triggered by Southern Hemisphere mid-latitude variability may also provide a controlling influence on ENSO in the equatorial Pacific. This subtropical forcing operates through various coupled air?Csea feedbacks involving the propagation of subtropical sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies into the deep tropics of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans from boreal winter to boreal spring and a subsequent dynamical atmospheric response to these SST anomalies linking the three tropical basins at the beginning of the boreal spring. This atmospheric response is characterized by a significant weakening of the equatorial Atlantic and Indian Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). This weakened ITCZ forces an equatorial ??cold Kelvin wave?? response in the middle to upper troposphere that extends eastward from the heat sink regions into the western Pacific. By modulating the vertical temperature gradient and the stability of the atmosphere over the equatorial western Pacific Ocean, this Kelvin wave response promotes persistent zonal wind and convective anomalies over the western equatorial Pacific, which may trigger El Ni?o onset at the end of the boreal winter. These different processes explain why South Atlantic and Indian subtropical dipole time series indices are highly significant precursors of the Ni?o34 SST index several months in advance before the El Ni?o onset in the equatorial Pacific. This study illustrates that the atmospheric internal variability in the mid-latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere may significantly influence ENSO variability. However, this surprising relationship is observed only during recent decades, after the so-called 1976/1977 climate regime shift, suggesting a possible linkage with global warming or decadal fluctuations of the climate system.     

Understanding the wet season variations over Florida

The wet season of Florida is well defined and is invariably centered in the boreal summer season of June–July–August. In this observational study we objectively define the Length of the Wet Season (LOWS) for Florida and examine its variations with respect to El Niño and the Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Atlantic Warm Pool (AWP). Our study reveals that ENSO variability has a profound influence on the LOWS especially over south Florida and parts of panhandle Florida prior to 1976. In the post-1976 era the influence of ENSO has significantly diminished. Our results show that in this pre-1976 era, warm (cold) ENSO events in the boreal winter are followed by long (short) LOWS over the region. This variation is consistent with warm (cold) ENSO events influencing early (late) onset of the wet season in the region. There is significant relationship of the LOWS in south and northeast Florida with the variation of the AWP. Unlike the teleconnection with ENSO the relationship of the demise of the wet season with AWP is stronger in the post-1976 period compared to the pre-1976 period. Furthermore the variability of the LOWS has increased in the post-1976 period.