Displacements and transformations of nitrate-rich and nitrate-poor water masses in the tropical Pacific during the 1997 El Niño

A Lagrangian analysis was applied to the outputs of a coupled physical-biogeochemical model to describe the redistribution of nitrate-rich and nitrate-poor surface water masses in the tropical Pacific throughout the major 1997 El Niño. The same tool was used to analyze the causes of nitrate changes along trajectories and to investigate the consequences of the slow nitrate uptake in the high nutrient low chlorophyll (HNLC) region during the growth phase of the event. Three patterns were identified during the drift of water masses. The first mechanism is well known along the equator: oligotrophic waters from the western Pacific are advected eastward and retain their oligotrophic properties along their drift. The second concerns the persistent upwelling in the eastern basin. Water parcels have complex trajectories within this retention zone and remain mesotrophic. This study draws attention to the third process which is very specific to the HNLC region and to the El Niño period. During the 1997 El Niño, horizontal and vertical inputs of nitrate decreased so dramatically that nitrate uptake by phytoplankton became the only mechanism driving nitrate changes along pathways. The study shows that because of the slow nitrate uptake characteristic of the tropical Pacific HNLC system, nitrate in the pre-El Niño photic layer can support biological production for a period of several months. As a consequence, the slow nitrate uptake delays the gradual onset of oligotrophic conditions over nearly all the area usually occupied by upwelled waters. Owing to this process, mesotrophic conditions persist in the tropical Pacific during El Niño events.     

Continued post-bleaching decline and changed benthic community of a Kenyan coral reef

During the global coral bleaching event of 1997/1998 Kenyan reefs experienced between 50% and 90% coral mortality, with coral cover at Malindi being reduced from 35–45% (pre-bleaching) to 10–20%. Even before this event there was concern that these reefs were being impacted by increased sediment loads from the nearby Sabaki River. Here we report that since 1998 coral cover has declined yet further with, in 2004, means of 5.1% being recorded at North Reef (within the non-fished Malindi Marine National Park) and 2.3% on Leopard Reef (within the fished Marine Reserve). Prior to bleaching 55 coral genera were recorded from the area, currently we find only 23. Meanwhile algal cover, especially the calcareous green alga Halimeda, has increased, and on Leopard Reef is twice that on North Reef. Taken with the evidence of previous studies, these data suggest a combined impact of coral bleaching with sedimentation and fishing.     

淮北地区2010年4月异常低温气候特征及成因分析

利用1961—2010年NCEP/NCAR再分析资料和4月淮北地区气温资料,用累积距平(CA)法、合成分析法对淮北地区气温的时空分布特征以及2010年4月淮北地区持续冷气候背景进行分析。文章分析了淮北地区4月冷、暖年的大气环流异常及要素场的空间分布特征。结果表明:淮北地区4月气温的年代际变化特征明显,在1990年前后发生了突变。贝加尔湖南部,100°E以东的华北地区中低层的冷空气活动与淮北地区4月气温高低存在很好的相关性,该地中低层冷空气强(弱),淮北地区4月气温低(高)。冷暖年,乌拉尔山暖脊、东亚大槽、西伯利亚高压等差异显著,说明以上是影响淮北地区4月气温异常的关键系统。另据分析,El Nino与淮北地区4月气温异常也具有很好的相关性。     

Has the Problem of a Permanent El Nio been Resolved for the Mid-Pliocene?

The mid-Pliocene, the most recent warm geological period, is thought to be indicative of the fate of the Earth's climate under global warming. Earlier evidence has suggested that permanent El Nio-like conditions existed in the mid-Pliocene, though the concept of a permanent El Nio remains controversial. Here, the authors analyzed Nio 3.4 SST in pre-industrial and mid-Pliocene simulations with the low-resolution version of the Norwegian Earth System Model (NorESM-L). The simulated mid-Pliocene Nio3.4 SST, with a smaller standard deviation, indicated that a weaker ENSO existed in the mid-Pliocene relative to the pre-industrial experiment. Compared with earlier modeling studies, our simulations show that the problem of ENSO's standard deviations in the mid-Pliocene remains unresolved, although the mean and the period of ENSO in the mid-Pliocene have been resolved by earlier geological and modeling studies.     

CAM3模式模拟厄尔尼诺事件对大气环流异常的影响

采用CAM3（Community Atmosphere Model Version3）模式中海气湍流通量参数化原方案和改进方案,利用观测海温驱动CAM3模式进行气候模拟,以分析模式对厄尔尼诺事件影响气候变化的模拟能力。结果表明,采用CAM3模式海气湍流通量参数化改进方案,模式能够更好地模拟出由厄尔尼诺事件引起的北太平洋和北美地区大气环流的变化,尤其是对厄尔尼诺年冬季阿留申低压强度和与PNA遥相关型有关的500hPa位势高度异常的模拟。     

El Nino事件对其衰减阶段夏季中国降水季节内演变的影响及其机理

利用1979—2007年NOAA重建海温逐月资料和中国160站夏季降水资料,使用扩展奇异值分解（extended singular value decomposition,ESVD）方法,研究了冬季热带太平洋海温异常与次年夏季中国降水异常季节内演变型之间的关系,指出前冬El Nino事件是与次年夏季中国降水季节内变化相联系的最重要的热带太平洋海温异常模态。相应的降水异常季节内变化情况为：6月在长江以南为正异常,江淮流域有负异常;7月在华南沿海有负降水异常,而正异常北进到长江流域,华北地区也出现正降水异常;8月在长江南北分别为少雨和多雨。进一步研究前冬El Nino事件与次年春夏印度洋、太平洋海温异常、对流层低层风场异常以及副热带高压等的联系,结果表明：El Nio事件发生的次年春夏,热带西太平洋周边存在东负西正的海温异常分布;西太平洋反气旋异常较强;副高在6月、7月偏西偏北,但在8月迅速南退。虽然与El Nino事件相联系的6月与7月、8月的降水型不同,但是西太平洋反气旋异常带来的充沛水汽造成7月长江流域雨季多雨,8月副高迅速南退带来的又一次长江流域降水,造成了El Nino事件发生次年夏季长江流域涝而华南沿海旱的夏季平均降水异常型。     

Warming in the northwestern Indian Ocean associated with the El Niño event

This paper investigates possible warming effects of an E1 Nifio event on the sea surface temperature anomaly （SSTA） in the northwestern Indian Ocean. Most pure positive Indian Ocean dipole （IOD） events （without an E1 Nifio event co-occurring） have a maximum positive SSTA mainly in the central Indian Ocean south of the equator, while most co-occurrences with an E1 Nifio event exhibit a northwest-southeast typical dipole mode. It is therefore inferred that warming in the northwestern Indian Ocean is closely related to the E1 Nifio event. Based on the atmospheric bridge theory, warming in the northwestern Indian Ocean during co-occurring cases may be primarily caused by relatively less latent heat loss from the ocean due to reduced wind speed. The deepened thermocline also contributes to the warming along the east coast of Africa through the suppressed upwelling of the cold water. Therefore, the E1 Nifio event is suggested to have a modulating effect on the structure of the dipole mode in the tropical Indian Ocean.     

福建省冬季暴雨过程及其环流特征

利用福建省66个气象观测站1960年12月至2008年2月的暴雨资料,分析了福建冬季暴雨的时空特征及主要影响天气系统。结果表明,冬季暴雨主要发生在闽西;福建冬季暴雨主要是南支槽东移、切变线维持和冷空气南下影响所致;冬季暴雨的产生与充沛的水汽、对流不稳定和辐合上升运动密切相关,但大气层结比汛期暴雨要稳定得多;冬季暴雨异常与500 hPa大气环流和赤道中东太平洋海温异常关系密切,它们可能主要通过大气环流的改变引起福建冬季暴雨异常。     

厄尔尼诺事件和拉尼娜事件的成因与预测

通过对南极气温资料、环南极海冰资料、臭氧变化资料、太平洋海温资料、地球自转速度变化资料、厄尔尼诺和拉尼娜资料的综合验证,发现了构造运动与厄尔尼诺因果关系。大气、海洋与岩石圈的角动量交换在南半球和北半球有不同的形式,这是由陆海分布的差异决定的。南极上空臭氧变化和环南极海冰变化是赤道海温和全球气候准两年振荡的原因。其中,德雷克海峡的海冰变化起主要作用。这个结论给出了作者提出的“海洋锅炉效应”、“臭氧洞漏能效应”、“德雷克海冰气候开关效应”和“大洋地壳跷跷板运动”的相互关系,证明构造运动对厄尔尼诺的重要影响。强潮汐准4a周期的发现,表明南极海冰变化、东太平洋海温变化、地球自转变化和厄尔尼诺都具有4a准周期变化的原因。海温和海冰开关的准2a周期和日食-厄尔尼诺系数理论有较好的预测效果。     

高低层纬向风切变的年际变率及气候学意义

用1959～1998共40年全球格点风场资料计算了200 hPa与850 hPa的纬向风速差, 即对流层纬向风切变(简称TZWS),并在此基础上得到其距平值。为了全面考察对流层中环流异常的年际变率特征, 根据TZWS的标准差分布, 文中选出了7个TZWS标准差数值大于5 m/s的代表性区域。这7个区域分别位于赤道中太平洋、赤道东太平洋、北太平洋亚热带地区、南太平洋亚热带地区、赤道大西洋、亚洲西南部以及东北部。前5个分别位于赤道、亚热带太平洋和大西洋的区域TZWS指数, 其年际变率与ENSO循环有密切联系, 反映了热带海洋温度异常对低纬度地区对流层环流的影响; 后2个区域的TZWS指数反映的是亚洲西南部和东北部的气候统变率, 在年际时间尺度上与ENSO循环有着明显的区别。通过对全球陆地降水和温度场的分析, 比较了热带、副热带的TZWS指数以及北极涛动指数的异同, 发现后2个区域TZWS指数能很好且能独立反映出北半球中高纬度地区陆地降水及陆地温度的异常模态。