Interdecadal variation of April mean rainfall in Korea

The statistical change-point analysis demonstrates that there is a climate regime shift in the April mean precipitation in Korea in 1981. The April mean precipitation in the years post-1981 showed a distinct decrease compared to the years pre-1981. This phenomenon was also noticed in China and Japan, excluding south China. One of the major causes for this decrease in April mean precipitation was the increased snow depth in the mid-latitude regions of continental East Asia. This resulted in a strengthened cold and dry anticyclone anomaly over continental East Asia and a relatively weakened subtropical anticyclone anomaly over the western North Pacific, thus forcing a continuation of the typical winter pressure pattern of “high-West and low-East” in East Asia in April. The strengthened northerly anomaly from this zonal pressure pattern anomaly played a significant role in restricting the northern movement of the subtropical anticyclone and preventing the inflow of warm and humid air into Korea.

     

ENSO与中国东部夏季降水异常关系的年代际变化

根据1960—2011年Had ISST资料集中的月平均海表温度资料和中国753站逐日降水资料,基于转经验正交函数分解等分析方法,发现中国夏季降水的变化具有明显的独立性特征,可以分为相对独立的11个雨区,并在此基础上讨论了11个雨区夏季降水与ENSO的相关关系及其年代际变化,发现不同雨区的夏季降水与ENSO相关关系的年代际变化特征不尽相同,据此可分为3种类型:第1类为稳定不相关型,代表区为东北地区、长江中下游地区、江南地区、闽赣地区、环琼州海峡地区;第2类为稳定相关型,代表区为河套地区、黄河中下游地区;第3类为相关关系变化型,代表区为辽吉地区、黄淮地区、淮河流域以及两广地区。而在第3类相关关系变化型中,4个雨区夏季降水与ENSO相关关系的年代际突变时间也存在差异,两广地区的突变年份在1975年左右,辽吉地区和黄淮地区的突变年份在1980年左右,淮河流域的突变年份在1985年左右。     

安顺地区暴雨日数年际变化的气候特征

利用1979—2009年31 a安顺地区（安顺、平坝、普定、镇宁、关岭和紫云）6站的降水资料,统计分析6站暴雨日数和暴雨量的变化特征,提取代表安顺地区的代表站,对其进行统计分析,得到安顺地区暴雨日数年际变化的气候特征。安顺地区暴雨日数的在20世纪80年代末—90年代末期间具有明显的3～5a的年际震荡,并在90年代初达到峰值。安顺地区暴雨偏多年在高低空环流、风场和能量场配置的主要特征为：700hPa和500hPa高低空位势高度配置一致,位势高度在中高纬度出现＂东高西低＂的走势,安顺地区位于异常低涡的东南部,西太平洋副热带高压的西部,这样来自异常低涡东南侧的冷空气与来自海洋北上的暖湿气流在此交汇,利于底层切变线和准静止锋的建立;安顺地区位于高空偏西急流的右前方的出口处,低空西南急流右前方的出口处和低空东南急流左前方的出口处,这种高低空急流的配置非常有利于暴雨区垂直上升运动的产生;安顺地区及其附近区域对流不稳定较强,利于对流不稳定能量的积累,从而使对流不稳定区域易出现强对流系统,对安顺地区的不稳定能量的储存和释放十分有利。     

Mechanism of ENSO influence on the South Asian monsoon rainfall in global model simulations

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - Coupled ocean atmosphere global climate models are increasingly being used for seasonal scale simulation of the South Asian monsoon. In these models, sea...     

西北地区3-9月降水量与ENSO的联系

利用1950-2005年全球陆地月平均降水资料,分析了中国西北地区3-9月平均降水量(Rm)与ENSO的统计关系.结果表明:在全球变暖背景下,厄尔尼诺当年(次年)西北地区Rm偏少(偏多)的关系依然稳定存在,并且随着全球增暖,该关系表现得更稳定.西北地区,尤其是西北地区东部是同纬度带主要干旱半干旱区中Rm与ENSO联系最紧密、最稳定的区域.北半球主要干旱半干旱区中,厄尔尼诺当年Rm偏少,次年Rm偏多的关系仅存在于中国北部地区.我国西北地区东部厄尔尼诺事件当年(次年)Rm偏少(偏多),我国西北地区西部38°N以南厄尔尼诺事件当年(次年)Rm偏多(偏少),存在着明显的东西部差异.     

银川河东机场小样本雷暴分类客观预报方法研究

利用2000—2016年欧洲中心再分析资料、探空及地面自动气象站观测资料,根据天气过程的强度和对应物理量,分别对银川河东机场雷暴伴随大风、降水等不同天气现象类别进行定量化转换,采用峰度偏度系数、χ~2以及Q-Q图3种方法对定量转换的数据进行正态性检验,结果表明:按天气现象分类的样本服从正态分布,未分类样本基本服从。利用逐步回归、多元回归、非线性回归、BP人工神经元网络以及支持向量机5种方法,分别建立了雷暴现象与强度预报模型。结果表明:BP网络以及SVM对天气现象的预报能力较强;分类逐步、多元以及非线性回归模型分别对弱雨、强雨以及大风和降雨同时发生的天气强度预报效果较好。并在此基础上通过最优分析设计了河东机场不同种类雷暴天气定性和定量预报相结合的业务系统。     

京津冀地区暖季降水日变化特征分析

使用2007—2017年京津冀地区156个气象站暖季（5—9月）逐小时降水观测数据,根据地形将研究区域分为6个分区,分析各分区降水量季节内变化和日变化特征,结果表明：1）京津冀的多雨区主要位于沿燕山南麓到太行山,存在多个降雨中心。2）各分区降水量季节内特征总体表现为单峰型,即7月降水量最大,7月第3候至8月第4候是主汛期,8月降水量次之,5月最少。3）降水呈夜间多,白天少的特点,7月初之前的前汛期降水多发生在16—21时;主汛期降水呈双峰型,峰值在17—22时,次峰值出现在00—07时;8月中旬以后的后汛期多夜间降水,峰值多出现在00—08时。4）高原山区多短历时降水,长历时累计降水对季节降水贡献率大值区位于平原地区,而持续性降水贡献率大值位于太行山区和燕山迎风坡的西部。     

Variability of rainfall characteristics over the South Coast region of South Africa

Thirty years of daily rainfall data are analysed for the South Coast region of South Africa, a region which experiences substantial rainfall variability and frequent severe drought and flood events, but whose climate variability has not been much researched. It is found that El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) exerts an influence since most wet years correspond to mature phase La Niña years. ENSO also influences South Coast rainfall via increases in the number of cut-off lows in southern South Africa during mature phase La Niña years. A statistically significant correlation between the Niño 3.4 index and monthly rainfall totals, and between this index and the frequency of wet days, exists for two summer months and also for June. There are also changes in the heavy rainfall day frequencies from one decade to another. Examination of NCEP re-analyses indicates that wet (dry) years result from an equatorward (poleward) shift in the subtropical jet, cyclonic (anticyclonic) pressure anomalies over the South Atlantic and South Africa, and increased (decreased) density of mid-latitude cyclonic systems.     

The variation of ENSO characteristics associated with atmospheric parameter perturbations in a coupled model

We analyse the differences in the properties of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in a set of 17 coupled integrations with the flux-adjusted, 19-level HadCM3 model with perturbed atmospheric parameters. Within this ensemble, the standard deviation of the NINO3.4 deseasonalised SSTs ranges from 0.6 to 1.3 K. The systematic changes in the properties of the ENSO with increasing amplitude confirm that ENSO in HadCM3 is prevalently a surface (or SST) mode. The tropical-Pacific SST variability in the ensemble of coupled integrations correlates positively with the SST variability in the corresponding ensemble of atmosphere models coupled with a static mixed-layer ocean (“slab” models) perturbed with the same changes in atmospheric parameters. Comparison with the respective coupled ENSO-neutral climatologies and with the slab-model climatologies indicates low-cloud cover to be an important controlling factor of the strength of the ENSO within the ensemble. Our analysis suggests that, in the HadCM3 model, increased SST variability localised in the south-east tropical Pacific, not originating from ENSO and associated with increased amounts of tropical stratocumulus cloud, causes increased ENSO variability via an atmospheric bridge mechanism. The relationship with cloud cover also results in a negative correlation between the ENSO activity and the model’s climate sensitivity to doubling CO₂.     

On the recent strengthening of the relationship between ENSO and northeast monsoon rainfall over South Asia

The southeastern parts of India and Sri Lanka receive substantial rainfall from the northeast monsoon (NEM) during October through December. The interannual variability in NEM rainfall is known to be significantly influenced by the El-Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Unlike the southwest monsoon (SWM), the NEM rainfall is enhanced during the warm ENSO events, and vice versa. In the context of the recent weakening of the inverse relationship between Southwest Monsoon (SWM) and ENSO, we examine the secular variations in the positive relationship between ENSO and NEM rainfall over South Asia, showing that their relationship has strengthened over the recent years. Based on the analysis of GISST, IMD/CRU precipitation and NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data, we suggest that this secular variation of the relationship is due to epochal changes in the tropospheric circulation associated with ENSO over the region.     

Numerical simulations of heavy rainfall over central Korea on 21 September 2010 using the WRF model

On 21 September 2010, heavy rainfall with a local maximum of 259 mm d-1occurred near Seoul, South Korea. We examined the ability of the Weather Research and Forecasting(WRF) model in reproducing this disastrous rainfall event and identified the role of two physical processes: planetary boundary layer(PBL) and microphysics(MPS) processes. The WRF model was forced by 6-hourly National Centers for Environmental Prediction(NCEP) Final analysis(FNL) data for 36 hours form 1200 UTC 20 to 0000 UTC 22 September 2010. Twenty-five experiments were performed, consisting of five different PBL schemes—Yonsei University(YSU), Mellor-Yamada-Janjic(MYJ), Quasi Normal Scale Elimination(QNSE),Bougeault and Lacarrere(Bou Lac), and University of Washington(UW)—and five different MPS schemes—WRF SingleMoment 6-class(WSM6), Goddard, Thompson, Milbrandt 2-moments, and Morrison 2-moments. As expected, there was a specific combination of MPS and PBL schemes that showed good skill in forecasting the precipitation. However, there was no specific PBL or MPS scheme that outperformed the others in all aspects. The experiments with the UW PBL or Thompson MPS scheme showed a relatively small amount of precipitation. Analyses form the sensitivity experiments confirmed that the spatial distribution of the simulated precipitation was dominated by the PBL processes, whereas the MPS processes determined the amount of rainfall. It was also found that the temporal evolution of the precipitation was influenced more by the PBL processes than by the MPS processes.     

A further investigation of the decadal variation of ENSO characteristics with instability analysis

Based on instability theory and some former studies, the Simple Ocean Data Assimilation （SODA） data are analyzed to further study the difference between the propagation of the ENSO-related oceanic anomaly in the off-equatorial North Pacific Ocean before and after 1976. The investigation shows that after 1976 in the off-equatorial North Pacific Ocean, there is a larger area where the necessary conditions for baroclinic and/or barotropic instability are satisfied, which may help oceanic anomaly signals propagating in the form of Rossby waves to absorb energy from the mean currents so that they can grow and intensify. The baroclinic energy conversion rate in the North Pacific after 1976 is much higher than before 1976, which indicates that the baroclinic instability has intensified since 1976. Prom another perspective, the instability analysis gives an explanation of the phenomena that the ENSO-related oceanic anomaly signal in the North Pacific has intensified since 1976.     

Simulating the influence of the South Atlantic dipole on the South Atlantic convergence zone during neutral ENSO

The South Atlantic Convergence Zone (SACZ) is an intrinsic characteristic of the South American Summer Monsoon. In a recent study, we verified that the main mode of coupled variability over the South Atlantic (South Atlantic Dipole (SAD)) plays a role in modulating the position of extratropical cyclones that affect the SACZ precipitation. In this study, we perform numerical experiments to further investigate the mechanisms between SAD and the SACZ. Numerical experiments forced with prescribed SST anomalies showed that, even though the Atlantic SST affects the position of the cyclone associated with the SACZ, the atmospheric response and precipitation patterns over land are opposed to the observations. On the other hand, experiments forced with prescribed anomalous driving fields showed that the atmospheric component of SAD plays a significant role for the right position and intensity of precipitation associated with the SACZ. SAD negative anomalies provide the low-level and upper-level atmospheric support for the intensification of the cyclone at surface and for the increase in precipitation over the land portion of the SACZ. Therefore, the numerical experiments suggest that, during El Niño Southern Oscillation neutral conditions, the SACZ precipitation variability associated with SAD is largely dependent on the atmospheric variability rather than the underlying SST.     

The seasonally-varying influence of ENSO on rainfall and tropical cyclone activity in the Philippines

An observational study covering the period 1950–2002 examines a seasonal reversal in the ENSO rainfall signal in the north-central Philippines. In boreal Summer of El Niño (La Niña) events, above (below) average rainfall typically occurs in this area. Rainfall anomalies of opposite sign develop across the country in the subsequent fall. This study investigates the seasonal evolution of the anomalous atmospheric circulation over the western North Pacific (WNP) during both El Niño and La Niña and places these features in the context of the large-scale evolution of ENSO events, including an analysis of changes in tropical cyclone activity affecting the Philippines. The results show that during boreal summer of El Niño (La Niña) events, a relatively narrow, zonally elongated band of enhanced (reduced) low-level westerlies develops across the WNP which serves to increase (decrease) the summer monsoon flow and moisture flux over the north-central Philippines and is associated with an increase (decrease) in the strength of the WNP monsoon trough via the anomalous relative vorticity. Tropical cyclone activity is shown to be enhanced (reduced) in the study region during boreal summer of El Niño (La Niña) events, which is related to the increase (decrease) of mid-level atmospheric moisture, as diagnosed using a genesis potential index. The subsequent evolution shows development of an anomalous anticyclone (cyclone) over the WNP in El Niño (La Niña) and the well-known tendency for below (above) average rainfall in the fall. Prolonged ENSO events also exhibit seasonal rainfall sign reversals in the Philippines with a similar evolution in atmospheric circulation.     

中国东南部地区4-6月强降水的低频变化特征

利用全国2 400多台站逐日降水资料,分析了中国东南部地区4—6月10~30 d低频强降水的时空变化特征。结果表明:4—6月10~30 d低频强降水的方差大值区在中国的长江及其以南地区,中心位于江南的中东部,东南部地区4—6月10~30 d低频强降水距平的第一模态反映该区域呈一致变化。功率谱分析表明第一模态时间变化的周期以10~30 d低频分量为主。根据区域强降水及其10~30 d低频强降水、区域强降水正交经验函数(EOF)分析的第一模态时间系数(PC1)及PC1的10~30 d低频分量的年际方差,结合它们两两之间逐年的相关系数,确定了区域强降水10~30 d强振荡典型年份。对典型年降水异常分布的方差分析,表明强振荡年区域总降水量异常主要是由10~30 d强降水的低频变化引起的。     

Precipitation over eastern South America and the South Atlantic Sea surface temperature during neutral ENSO periods

The dominant mode of coupled variability over the South Atlantic Ocean is known as “South Atlantic Dipole” (SAD) and is characterized by a dipole in sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies with centers over the tropical and the extratropical South Atlantic. Previous studies have shown that variations in SST related to SAD modulate large-scale patterns of precipitation over the Atlantic Ocean. Here we show that variations in the South Atlantic SST are associated with changes in daily precipitation over eastern South America. Rain gauge precipitation, satellite derived sea surface temperature and reanalysis data are used to investigate the variability of the subtropical and tropical South Atlantic and impacts on precipitation. SAD phases are assessed by performing Singular value decomposition analysis of sea level pressure and SST anomalies. We show that during neutral El Niño Southern Oscillation events, SAD plays an important role in modulating cyclogenesis and the characteristics of the South Atlantic Convergence Zone. Positive SST anomalies over the extratropical South Atlantic (SAD negative phase) are related to increased cyclogenesis near southeast Brazil as well as the migration of extratropical cyclones further north. As a consequence, these systems organize convection and increase precipitation over eastern South America.