Interdecadal Change of Relation between East Asian Summer Monsoon and ENSO in Previous Winter in An Ocean Assimilation System Based on FGOALS-s2

Ocean Assimilation System (OAS) is an important component for decadal prediction experiment, providing initial conditions. Evaluating the atmosphere response in OAS can provide reference for analyzing results from decadal prediction. We analyzed the interdecadal change in relation between the East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) and El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the previous winter based on an OAS on the coupled climate model FGOALS-s2. It shows that two factors impact the performance: ① interdecadal change of Ssea Surface Temperature (SST) pattern in the summer Indo-Pacific Basin related with ENSO in previous winter and ② bias in model response of the western North Pacific anticyclone to tropical SST anomalies. The anticyclone shows steady relation with the warm eastern Indian Ocean. When ENSO’s impact on the summer Indian Ocean is strengthened around the end of 1970s, the OAS can reproduce the strengthened EASM-ENSO relation. However, the trend of intensified EASM-ENSO relation in the OAS is still significant after the mid-1990s due to the stronger link between the anticyclone and the northeastern Indian Ocean, differing with the observation which shows a weakened effect of the Indian Ocean on the anticyclone. In addition, the bias in response to the SST anomalies in the central Pacific also partly contributes to the failure in reproducing the weakening EASM-ENSO relation after the mid-1990s. It implies that prediction skill of interdecadal ENSO impact on the tropical Indo-Pacific SST and response bias of model to SST anomalies may to some extent limit the capability to predict the interdecadal change in the EASM-ENSO relation.     

Impacts of Initialization Schemes of Oceanic States on the Predictive Skills of the IAP Near-Term Climate Prediction System

Based on the near-term climate prediction system of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (hereafter IAP-DecPreS), we developed two distinct initialization schemes for the Coupled Global Climate Models (CGCM), FGOALS-s2. The first scheme used the Incremental Analysis Update (IAU) to assimilate gridded oceanic temperature and salinity data derived from the EN3 dataset. The second scheme used the merge of the ensemble optimal interpolation (EnOI) and IAU scheme (hereafter EnOI-IAU) to assimilate raw observational oceanic temperature and salinity profiles. The predictive skills of the decadal prediction experiments based on the two schemes were compared. Several metrics including temporal correlation and root mean square skills score indicate that the experiment based on the EnOI-IAU shows significantly higher predictive skills in the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) anomalies in the North Pacific associated with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), than the experiment based on the IAU. In contrast, for the Atlantic Multi-Decadal Oscillation (AMO), the predictive skills of the experiment based on the EnOI-IAU are lower than that based on the IAU. The AMO has two activity centers, located in the subpolar and tropical North Atlantic. The skills of the experiment based on the EnOI are close to that based on the IAU in the tropical North Atlantic, while much lower than the latter in the extratropical region due to a false simulation of the warming trend in the region.     

Tropical cyclone activity in global warming scenario

Research efforts focused on assessing the potential for changes in tropical cyclone activity in the greenhouse-warmed climate have progressed since the IPCC assessment in 1996. Vulnerability to tropical cyclones becoming more pronounced due to the fastest population growth in tropical coastal regions makes it practically important to explore possible changes in tropical cyclone activity due to global warming. This paper investigates the tropical cyclone activity over whole globe and also individually over six different ocean basins. The parameters like storm frequency, storm duration, maximum intensity attained and location of formation of storm have been examined over the past 30-year period from 1977 to 2006. Of all, the north Atlantic Ocean shows a significant increasing trend in storm frequency and storm days, especially for intense cyclones. Lifetime of intense tropical cyclones over south Indian Ocean has been increased. The intense cyclonic activity over north Atlantic, south-west Pacific, north and south Indian Ocean has been increased in recent 15 years as compared to previous 15 years, whereas in the east and west-north Pacific it is decreased, instead weak cyclone activity has been increased there. Examination of maximum intensity shows that cyclones are becoming more and more intense over the south Indian Ocean with the highest rate. The study of the change in the cyclogenesis events in the recent 15 years shows more increase in the north Atlantic. The Arabian Sea experiences increase in the cyclogenesis in general, whereas Bay of Bengal witnesses decrease in these events. Shrinking of cyclogenesis region occurs in the east-north Pacific and south-west Pacific, whereas expansion occurs in west-north Pacific. The change in cyclogenesis events and their spatial distribution in association with the meteorological parameters like sea surface temperature (SST), vertical wind shear has been studied for Indian Ocean. The increase in SST and decrease in wind shear correspond to increase in the cyclogenesis events and vice versa for north Indian Ocean; however, for south Indian Ocean, it is not one to one.     

Seasonal Dependence of the North Pacific and North Atlantic SST Predictability and Forecast Skill

In this paper, the decadal predictability and forecast skill of the Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies (SSTA) in the North Pacific and North Atlantic Ocean were investigated by conducting three sets of perfect model forecast experiments using a global coupled general circulation model. The results show that the annual mean SSTA in the North Pacific is less predictable on decadal time scale, with the forecast skill notably weaker than that of the North Atlantic. By analyzing the predictability and forecast skill of seasonal mean SSTA, it is found that the decadal predictability and forecast skill of the winter mean (JFM) SSTA in the central and western North Pacific are significantly higher than those of other seasons, and the magnitude is comparable with that of the North Atlantic. The predictability and forecast skill of the North Atlantic SSTA also show seasonal variations. Further analysis indicates that the seasonal dependence of the SSTA decadal predictability and forecast skill in the North Pacific is due to the winter-to-winter reemergence mechanism of SSTA in the North Pacific, which results from the seasonal variation of the mixed layer depth of the North Pacific Ocean. While the seasonal dependence of the North Atlantic SSTA predictability and forecast skill might be related to seasonal variations of other processes, such as the Atlantic Decadal Oscillation. The results of this paper suggest that for decadal climate prediction, if the forecast skill of the seasonal mean is taken into account, we might obtain higher than annual mean forecast skill for some seasons.     

Tree‐ring‐based annual precipitation reconstruction for the Hexi Corridor,NW China: consequences for climate history on and beyond the mid‐latitude Asian continent

An annual (July to June) precipitation reconstruction for the period AD 1760–2010 was developed from a Picea crassifolia regional tree‐ring chronology from two sites in the northern mountainous region of the Hexi Corridor, NW China. This reconstruction explains 52.1% of the actual precipitation variance during the period 1951 to 2010. Spatial correlations with gridded land‐surface data reveal that our reconstruction contains a strong regional precipitation signal for the Hexi Corridor and for the southern margin of the Badain Jaran Desert. Significant spectral peaks were identified at 31.9, 11.1, 8.0, 7.0, 3.2, 2.6 and 2.2 years. A large‐scale comparison indicates that our reconstruction is more consistent with climate records of a Westerly‐dominated Central Asia, and that the Westerlies have a greater impact on the precipitation in this region than the Asian summer monsoon. Our reconstructed precipitation series is significantly correlated with sea‐surface temperature (SST) in the tropical Atlantic Ocean (positive), the tropical Indian Ocean (positive), the western tropical Pacific Ocean (positive), and the western North Pacific Ocean (negative). The spatial correlation patterns between our precipitation reconstruction and SSTs of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans suggest a connection between regional precipitation variations and the high‐mid‐latitude northern atmospheric circulations (Westerlies and Asian summer monsoon).     

Blueprints for Medieval hydroclimate

According to tree ring and other records, a series of severe droughts that lasted for decades afflicted western North America during the Medieval period resulting in a more arid climate than in subsequent centuries. A review of proxy evidence from around the world indicates that North American megadroughts were part of a global pattern of Medieval hydroclimate that was distinct from that of today. In particular, the Medieval hydroclimate was wet in northern South America, dry in mid-latitude South America, dry in eastern Africa but with strong Nile River floods and a strong Indian monsoon. This pattern is similar to that accompanying persistent North American droughts in the instrumental era. This pattern is compared to that associated with familiar climate phenomena. The best fit comes from a persistently La Niña-like tropical Pacific and the warm phase of the so-called Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation. A positive North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) also helps to explain the Medieval hydroclimate pattern. Limited sea surface temperature reconstructions support the contention that the tropical Pacific was cold and the subtropical North Atlantic was warm, ideal conditions for North American drought. Tentative modeling results indicate that a multi-century La Niña-like state could have arisen as a coupled atmosphere–ocean response to high irradiance and weak volcanism during the Medieval period and that this could in turn have induced a persistently positive NAO state. A La Niña-like state could also induce a strengthening of the North Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, and hence warming of the North Atlantic Ocean, by (i) the ocean response to the positive NAO and by shifting the southern mid-latitude westerlies poleward which (ii) will increase the salt flux from the Indian Ocean into the South Atlantic and (iii) drive stronger Southern Ocean upwelling.     

Study of the global and regional climatic impacts of ENSO magnitude using SPEEDY AGCM

ENSO is considered as a strong atmospheric teleconnection that has pronounced global and regional circulation effects. It modifies global monsoon system, especially, Asian and African monsoons. Previous studies suggest that both the frequency and magnitude of ENSO events have increased over the last few decades resulting in a need to study climatic impacts of ENSO magnitude both at global and regional scales. Hence, to better understand the impact of ENSO amplitude over the tropical and extratropical regions focussing on the Asian and African domains, ENSO sensitivity experiments are conducted using ICTPAGCM (‘SPEEDY’). It is anticipated that the tropical Pacific SST forcing will be enough to produce ENSO-induced teleconnection patterns; therefore, the model is forced using NINO3.4 regressed SST anomalies over the tropical Pacific only. SPEEDY reproduces the impact of ENSO over the Pacific, North and South America and African regions very well. However, it underestimates ENSO teleconnection patterns and associated changes over South Asia, particularly in the Indian region, which suggests that the tropical Pacific SST forcing is not sufficient to represent ENSO-induced teleconnection patterns over South Asia. Therefore, SST forcing over the tropical Indian Ocean together with air–sea coupling is also required for better representation of ENSO-induced changes in these regions. Moreover, results obtained by this pacemaker experiment show that ENSO impacts are relatively stronger over the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) compared to extratropics and high latitude regions. The positive phase of ENSO causes weakening in rainfall activity over African tropical rain belt, parts of South and Southeast Asia, whereas, the La Niña phase produces more rain over these regions during the summer season. Model results further reveal that ENSO magnitude has a stronger impact over African Sahel and South Asia, especially over the Indian region because of its significant impact over the tropical Atlantic and the Indian Ocean through Walker circulation. ENSO-induced negative (positive) NAO-like response and associated changes over Southern Europe and North Africa get significantly strong following increased intensity of El Niño (La Niña) in the northern (southern) hemisphere in the boreal winter (summer) season. We further find that ENSO magnitude significantly impacts Hadley and Walker circulations. The positive phase of ENSO (El Niño) overall strengthens Hadley cell and a reverse is true for the La Niña phase. ENSO-induced strengthening and weakening of Hadley cell induces significant impact over South Asian and African ITCZ convective regions through modification of ITCZ/monsoon circulation system.     

The Impact of Volcanic Eruption on Decadal-Scale Climate Prediction Skill of Pacic Sea Surface Temperatures in the IAP Near-Term Climate Prediction System(IAP DecPreS)

Explosive volcanic eruptions are known to be a leading cause of natural climate change. There has been a growing recognition that there is a measurable climate system response even to moderate-sized volcanic eruptions. In this study, we investigated the hindcast skills of the Pacific Sea Surface Temperatures (SSTs) using the hindcast experiments based on the near-term climate prediction system DecPreS developed by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP)(hereafter DP-EnOI-IAU experiments). The DP-EnOI-IAU experiments were run for initial years from 1960 to 2005. These hindcasts took into account observed stratospheric aerosol concentrations that included the four large tropical volcanic eruptions during that period. The time evolution over the entire hindcast period for skill in predicting the patterns of the 3~7 year prediction averages for Pacific SSTs showed that there was statistically significant skill for most years except for a dramatic drop in skill during the 1980s and 1990s. Decadal hindcast skill is reduced if the post-eruption model response deviates the internal El Niño variability in the observations. The simulations showed a post-eruption SST of a La Niña-like pattern in the third northern winter after the 1982 El Chichon eruption and a El Niño-like pattern after the 1991 Pinatubo eruption, which were opposite in sign to what was in the observations. This lead to the loss of hindcast skill for years in the 1980s and 1990s affected by the eruptions. Agung (1963) happened to have post-eruption Pacific SSTs more similar to the observations and thus did not degrade prediction skill in the hindcasts.     

区域海气耦合模式研究进展

区域海气耦合模式是进行区域尺度气候模拟和预估的重要工具,近年来得到快速发展。在阐述区域海气耦合过程重要性的基础上,对当今国内外主要的区域海气耦合模式研究进展进行总结,归纳区域海气耦合模拟所关注的核心科学问题,介绍区域海气耦合模式的技术特点。发展基于耦合器且无通量订正的区域海气耦合模式是区域海气耦合模式发展的主流方向。当前国际上区域海气耦合模拟所关注的主要科学问题,包括区域海气耦合模式对区域海洋过程的模拟、区域海气耦合模式对区域大气过程的模拟、亚洲—西北太平洋季风模拟及其耦合模拟海表面温度(SST)冷偏差问题、热带海气相互作用过程模拟,以及区域海气耦合模式对未来气候变化的预估研究等。对上述5个方面科学问题的研究思路和主要科学结论进行总结,重点关注针对亚洲—西北太平洋季风区的区域海气耦合模拟研究,对区域海气耦合过程改进亚洲—西北太平洋地区降水模拟的物理机制,及在该区域模拟SST冷偏差的成因亦进行相关归纳和总结。最后提出当前区域海气耦合模拟亟待解决的关键科学问题。     

Late Quaternary moisture export across Central America and to Greenland: evidence for tropical rainfall variability from Costa Rican stalagmites

We present a high-resolution terrestrial archive of Central American rainfall over the period 100–24 and 8.1–6.5 ka, based on δ¹⁸O time series from U-series dated stalagmites collected from a cave on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. Our results indicate substantial δ¹⁸O variability on millennial to orbital time scales that is interpreted to reflect rainfall variations over the cave site. Correlations with other paleoclimate proxy records suggest that the rainfall variations are forced by sea surface temperatures (SST) in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in a fashion analogous to the modern climate cycle. Higher rainfall is associated with periods of a warm tropical North Atlantic Ocean and large SST gradients between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Rainfall variability is likely linked to the intensity and/or latitudinal position of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ). Periods of higher rainfall in Costa Rica are also associated with an enhanced sea surface salinity gradient on either side of the isthmus, suggesting greater freshwater export from the Atlantic Basin when the ITCZ is stronger and/or in a more northerly position. Further, wet periods in Central America coincide with high deuterium excess values in Greenland ice, suggesting a direct link between low latitude SSTs, tropical rainfall, and moisture delivery to Greenland. Our results indicate that a stronger tropical hydrological cycle during warm periods and large inter-ocean SST gradients enhanced the delivery of low latitude moisture to Greenland.     

末次盛冰期西太平洋海温差异对亚洲夏季风影响的数值模拟

文章利用Zhao等的模拟结果,进一步研究了在末次盛冰期(LGM)情景下汪品先和CLIMAP两种重建海洋表面温度(SST)资料差异对亚洲夏季风的影响。模拟结果表明:在LGM情景下西太平洋海域SST资料的不同对模拟的亚洲夏季风有着十分重要的作用。夏季,与CLGM方案相比,在WLGM方案中,当热带西太平洋SST较暖时,印度地区的大气热量出现显著增加,大气热量的这种变化,使得南非高压、南印度洋经向Hadley环流加强,伴随着索马里越赤道气流加强,也导致了印度季风区纬向季风环流的加强,从而造成了印度夏季风增强、降水增多;与较暖的热带西太平洋相对应,澳大利亚高压和120°E附近越赤道气流减弱,东亚季风区20°N以南经向季风环流加强、20°N以北经向季风环流减弱,指示着一个强的南海夏季风和较弱东亚副热带大陆夏季风。     

末次盛冰期太平洋赤道辐合带对暖池外热带海表温度变化的敏感性

利用美国NCAR CAM3大气环流模式,分析了末次盛冰期（LGM）两个不同的热带海表温度重建方案中,北半球冬季热带中、西太平洋对流活动及大气环流对暖池外（赤道东太平洋和热带大西洋）热带SST异常的敏感性。结果表明：  1）SST异常首先引起大气环流的改变。  赤道东太平洋对流层下沉增强,而作为经向补偿,副热带东太平洋上升运动增强,其中南半球尤为明显,同时南半球热带中、西太平洋上升运动增强,加剧了该区纬向逆时针环流,说明冰期热带海气耦合过程受气候背景场（如SST）影响很大;   2）大气环流格局改变引起热带中西太平洋的大气加热、对流活动、表层风场及降雨的巨大变化。  140°E以西的婆罗洲和菲律宾区域,总的大气加热减少是由于对流与辐射加热减少所致,对应于该区风场辐散和降雨减少;   而140°E以东的南半球热带中、西太平洋,大气吸收热量增加,对流与辐射加热均增强,总降雨量也随之增加,反映该区赤道辐合带南移并增强。该项研究为探索热带太平洋在冰期/间冰期旋回中的古海洋学变化提供了新的数据支撑。此外,不同重建SST对赤道辐合带的影响比较大,因此利用重建SST进行数值模拟或者利用耦合模式研究LGM热带海气相互作用时,应该十分重视全球热带SST分布特征。     

利用树轮密度重建新疆北部5-8月温度变化

利用新疆北部5个采样点的树轮密度年表主序列和新疆北部33个气象站观测气温平均值进行相关分析,结果显示其与新疆北部5-8月平均温度存在很强一致相关性,相关系数为0.667（p<0.001, n=49）。温度重建方程能够解释校准期（1960-2008年）内44.5%的温度变化方差。空间相关分析揭示该温度重建序列能够表征新疆北部过去353 a （1656-2008年）5-8月温度总体变化特征。重建序列揭示新疆北部5-8月平均温度大致经历了6个偏暖阶段,即1656-1664年、1667-1692年、1711-1734年、1804-1832年、1855-1956年、2000-2008年,中间为偏冷阶段,这些阶段中间多个小幅度变化。温度重建结果发现新疆北部温度变化与太阳活动、火山喷发有着紧密联系。温度重建序列与全球海温场的相关分析显示当西风带海区及热带大西洋地区的海温偏高时,研究区气温偏高。与海温、火山喷发和云量变化的相关分析都指示在西风环流的作用下,上述因子对于该地区温度变化有着重要影响。该温度重建序列在低频变化上与北半球气温具有显著正相关,说明中亚地区温度变化与北半球整体温度变化具有较好的一致性。     

Seasonal forecasting of tropical cyclogenesis over the North Indian Ocean

Over the North Indian Ocean (NIO) and particularly over the Bay of Bengal (BoB), the post-monsoon season from October to December (OND) are known to produce tropical cyclones, which cause damage to life and property over India and many neighbouring countries. The variability of frequency of cyclonic disturbances (CDs) during OND season is found to be associated with variability of previous large-scale features during monsoon season from June to September, which is used to develop seasonal forecast model of CDs frequency over the BoB and NIO based on principal component regression (PCR). Six dynamical/thermodynamical parameters during previous June–August, viz., (i) sea surface temperature (SST) over the equatorial central Pacific, (ii) sea level pressure (SLP) over the southeastern equatorial Indian Ocean, (iii) meridional wind over the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean at 850 hPa, (iv) strength of upper level easterly, (v) strength of monsoon westerly over North Indian Ocean at 850 hPa, and (vi) SST over the northwest Pacific having significant and stable relationship with CDs over BoB in subsequent OND season are used in PCR model for a training period of 40 years (1971–2010) and the latest four years (2011–2014) are used for validation. The PCR model indicates highly significant correlation coefficient of 0.77 (0.76) between forecast and observed frequency of CD over the BoB (NIO) for the whole period of 44 years and is associated with the root mean square error and mean absolute error ≤ 1 CD. With respect to the category forecast of CD frequency over BoB and NIO, the Hit score is found to be about 63% and the Relative Operating Curves (ROC) for above and below normal forecast is found to be having much better forecast skill than the climatology. The PCR model performs very well, particularly for the above and below normal CD year over the BoB and the NIO, during the test period from 2011 to 2014.     

利用印度洋前期海温进行东亚地区月均降水的数值预报试验

利用中国科学院大气物理研究所的两层全球大气环流模式（GCM）,在加入1999年和2000年1～6月的低纬度中东太平洋及印度洋的实际海温场后,对同年6～8月的全球大气环流及气候变化进行了数值模拟,重点讨论了东亚地区和我国大部分地区的环流及短期气候变化情况,对比分析了模式预报的月平均降水与实际降水的异同,得出了一些有意义的结论,对利用数值模式进行月平均降水的预报做了一些基本工作。     

Geochemical and Nd–Pb isotopic characteristics of the Tethyan asthenosphere: implications for the origin of the Indian Ocean mantle domain

It is unclear why the Pb, Nd, and Sr isotopic composition of the modern mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) from the Indian Ocean is different from that of the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. A possible explanation for this is that the Indian MORB-type isotopic signature is a long-lived regional feature of the mantle, as evidently shown by the isotopic composition of the 350 Ma MORB-like Mian-Lue northern ophiolite, which was formed in the same region presently occupied by the Indian Ocean. However, this hypothesis is in conflict with the lack of Indian MORB-type isotopic signature in a number of 150 Ma Tethyan and Indian Ocean crusts. To further constrain the origin of the Indian MORB-type isotopic signature, we analyze the geochemical and Pb, Nd, and Sr isotopic composition of representative mafic rocks from four Tethyan ophiolites ranging in age from 90 to 360 Ma. The Sr isotopic composition of the samples is unreliable due to alteration, but the age-corrected Nd and Pb isotopic ratios and geochemical data indicate that these Tethyan rocks were derived from a geochemically depleted asthenospheric source that had a clear Indian MORB-type isotopic signature. We therefore conclude that the bulk of the Indian suboceanic mantle was most probably inherited from the Tethyan asthenosphere. A few regions in both the Tethyan and Indian Oceans, however, are most probably underlain by Pacific and North Atlantic MORB-type mantle (and vice-versa) because of the flow of the asthenosphere in response to tectonic plate reorganizations that lead to openings and closures of ocean basins. The Indian MORB-type isotopic signature of the western Pacific marginal basin crusts could be due to either flow of the Indian Ocean mantle into the western Pacific or to endogenous production of such an isotopic signature from delaminated East-Asian sublithospheric materials during closure of the Tethys Ocean.     

Impact of satellite observed microwave SST on the simulation of tropical cyclones

The impact of realistic representation of sea surface temperature (SST) on the numerical simulation of track and intensity of tropical cyclones formed over the north Indian Ocean is studied using the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model. We have selected two intense tropical cyclones formed over the Bay of Bengal for studying the SST impact. Two different sets of SSTs were used in this study: one from TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI) satellite and other is the weekly averaged Reynold’s SST analysis from National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP). WRF simulations were conducted using the Reynold’s and TMI SST as model boundary condition for the two cyclone cases selected. The TMI SST which has a better temporal and spatial resolution showed sharper gradient when compared to the Reynold’s SST. The use of TMI SST improved the WRF cyclone intensity prediction when compared to that using Reynold’s SST for both the cases studied. The improvements in intensity were mainly due to the improved prediction of surface latent and sensible heat fluxes. The use of TMI SST in place of Reynold’s SST improved cyclone track prediction for Orissa super cyclone but slightly degraded track prediction for cyclone Mala. The present modeling study supports the well established notion that the horizontal SST gradient is one of the major driving forces for the intensification and movement of tropical cyclones over the Indian Ocean.     

Climate prediction experiences in southern Africa 1990–2005 and key outcomes

This paper reviews long-range climate prediction with a focus on experiences in southern Africa from 1990 to 2005 and statistical techniques based on historical replication. The initial growth and use of climate predictions in southern Africa created an understanding of tropical Atlantic and Indian Ocean coupling with Pacific El Niño and the African monsoon, and fostered extensions of the global observing system as a key outcome. An intercomparison of forecast errors highlights optimal scales for model aggregation. Cases of forecast development are analyzed and a tendency for neutral messages is found. South African maize yield exhibits an uptrend (+0.26 T ha^?1/year) since 1992 that may be related to the increased use of Internet and uptake of long-range forecasts.     

Pb, Sr AND Nd-ISOTOPIC COMPOSITIONS OF PALEO AND NEO-TETHYAN OCEANIC CRUSTS IN THE EASTERN TETHYAN DOMAIN: IMPLICATION FOR THE INDIAN OCEAN-TYPE ISOTOPIC SIGNATURE

Pb, Sr AND Nd-ISOTOPIC COMPOSITIONS OF PALEO AND NEO-TETHYAN OCEANIC CRUSTS IN THE EASTERN TETHYAN DOMAIN: IMPLICATION FOR THE INDIAN OCEAN-TYPE ISOTOPIC SIGNATURE     

Tropical cyclone prediction over Bay of Bengal: a comparison of the performance of NCEP operational HWRF, NCAR ARW, and MM5 models

Much progress has been made in the area of tropical cyclone prediction using high-resolution mesoscale models based on community models developed at National Centers for Environmental Predication (NCEP) and National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). While most of these model research and development activities are focused on predicting hurricanes in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific domains, there has been much interest in using these models for tropical cyclone prediction in the North Indian Ocean region, particularly for Bay of Bengal storms that are known historically causing severe damage to life and property. In this study, the advanced operational hurricane modeling system developed at NCEP, known as the Hurricane Weather Research and Forecast (HWRF) model, is used to simulate two recent Bay of Bengal tropical cyclones??Nargis of November 2007 and Sidr of April 2008. The advanced NCEP operational vortex initialization procedure is adapted for simulating these Bay of Bengal tropical cyclones. Two additional regional models, the NCAR Advanced Research WRF and NCAR/Penn State University Mesoscale Model version 5 (MM5) are also used in simulating these storms. Results from these experiments highlight the superior performance of HWRF model over other models in predicting the Bay of Bengal cyclones. These results also suggest the need for a sophisticated vortex initialization procedure in conjunction with a model designed exclusively for tropical cyclone prediction for operational considerations.