Dynamic Seasonal Transition from Winter to Summer in the Northern Hemisphere Stratosphere

This study applied the modified spatial simi- larity coefficient method to define the seasonal transition （ST） from winter to summer in the extratropical strato- sphere of the Northern Hemisphere. The features of the ST were examined using European Centre for Medium- Range Weather Forecasts （ECMWF） Interim reanalysis data; and the results showed that the time and duration of the ST, which is affected by the activity of planetary waves （PW） in the stratosphere, largely depended on the geophysical locations. This study also investigated the interannual variability of the ST and its relationship with stratospheric sudden warming （SSW） and the qua- si-biennial oscillation （QBO）. It was shown that the late-onset SSW events （after 22 January） are close to the start of the ST. An easterly （westerly） QBO hastens （de- lays） the onset of the ST in high and low latitudes, whereas it delays （hastens） the ST in midlatitudes. The duration of the ST is significantly affected by the QBO. The influence of SSW and the QBO have different sig- nificance in different latitudes, so they are both important and irreplaceable factors.     

近30a来北半球对流层大气月均环流的涡动减弱现象

利用1980-2009年NCEP／NCAR月平均再分析资料,研究了在全球变暖背景下北半球对流层大气涡动减弱现象。结果表明：北半球涡度拟能30a来整体呈减弱趋势,在北太平洋地区和极地减弱尤为显著,12．5～50°N为影响北半球大气涡动变化的关键区域。由于对流层200hPa以下大气的增暖,特别是中高纬地区显著增暖,减弱了经向温度梯度,使得副热带西风急流的强度亦呈减弱趋势。这与涡度拟能的变化有显著的正相关关系。分析了北半球正压Rossby波动诊断量E和热量经向涡动通量的变化,表明中纬度波能传播在不同地区有不同趋势,而热量的经向涡动输送与涡度拟能的变化也呈现显著的正相关关系,减弱明显。研究结果对深刻认识大气环流变化规律和理解全球变暖的可能影响具有重要意义。     

Transition from the Southern to the Northern Hemisphere summer of zones of active convection over the Congo Basin

Summary This study used monthly rainfall totals for the period 1961 to 1988 and pentad OLR values for the period 1974 to 1991 to study the structure and transition of active convention across the Congo Basin (10°S–5°N, 15°E–35°E) from the southern to the northern hemisphere summer. This involved the examination of map patterns and cross-sections of monthly rainfall and pentad OLR data.The results from the study indicated that there were two seasons observed over the Congo Basin; one is the wet season lasting from September to April and the other a dry season covering the rest of the year. The onset of the wet season takes place rapidly with active convection spreading very quickly to the south near latitude 20°S. This is due to the formation of the meridional (north–south) branch of the ITCZ over this region.This study has confirmed that the annual rainfall over the Congo Basin is reliable with the coefficient of variation of less than 30%. The wet seasons (e.g., SON and DJF) also show reliable rainfall occurrence but the dry season (e.g., JJA) has low reliability.The anomalously wet seasons are characterised by a relatively slow transition rate (1° latitude per pentad) of zones of active convection resulting in a late withdrawal of the rainy season while the dry seasons show a rapid transition rate with an early withdrawal of zones of active convection.High-rainfall months (>200mm) are concentrated within the Southern Hemisphere summer months. These high-rainfall months progress from the equator to the southern latitude following generally the movement of the overhead sun.The results further revealed that the years 1987/1984 had the lowest/highest mean OLR values over the Congo Basin within the period 1979 to 1991. The rates of transition of the zones of low OLR values were 0.9/5.0 degrees of latitude during 1987/1984, respectively.Received June 18, 2002; revised September 30, 2002; accepted November 21, 2002 Published online: June 12, 2003     

由冬至夏北半球副热带地区大气热源的季节转换特征及其可能机制

本文基于多套卫星观测数据和ERA-Interim再分析资料,分析了由冬至夏北半球副热带地区大气热源的季节转换特征及其原因。结果表明,北半球副热带大陆东部以对流凝结潜热为主的夏季型大气热源首先于4月初在我国南方地区建立,该过程与江南雨季的形成发展联系紧密。2~3月,江南地区的大气热源以感热加热为主,这时降水以大尺度层云降水为主;而在4月初之后,江南地区降水以对流性降水为主,相应地对流凝结潜热成为大气热源的主要成分。动力和热力诊断分析说明,青藏高原南部热力状况的季节变化是导致4月初江南地区降水性质和大气热源首先发生季节转换的重要原因。2~3月,随着太阳辐射逐渐增强,青藏高原地面感热随之加强,此时对流层中部的纬向西风令江南地区的对流层中部暖平流加强,引起上升运动并加强局地大尺度层云降水,令土壤湿度加大,为随后局地对流性降水的快速发展提供了有利条件。之后,青藏高原地面感热在4~5月期间继续加强,这时高原南坡的"感热气泵"令其四周的低空水汽向北辐合,从而加强了江南地区的低空南风,使大量水汽自南海-西太平洋向北输送,令江南地区的对流性降水快速发展,地面感热迅速减小,对流凝结潜热进而成为江南地区大气热源的主要成分。     

BCC模式对北半球阻塞高压的模拟偏差评估及原因

基于NCEP/NCAR、日本气象厅的JRA55以及欧洲中期预报中心（ECMWF）最新发布的ERA5三套逐日再分析资料数据,考察国家气候中心中等分辨率（约110 km）的气候系统模式BCC-CSM2-MR和单独大气模式BCC-AGCM3-MR对北半球中高纬度阻塞高压（阻高）的模拟能力。再分析数据分析结果表明:“北大西洋—欧洲地区”以及“北太平洋中部地区”分别为北半球阻高发生的最高频及次高频区域;冬春季为阻高高发季节,夏秋季阻高频率减少至冬春季的一半左右;ERA5再分析资料中各个季节的阻高频率均高于另两套资料结果,尤其在北太平洋地区。模拟评估结果显示,单独大气模式BCC-AGCM3-MR对北半球中高纬度阻高发生频率、空间分布和季节变化特征均有较好的模拟能力,其主要偏差表现为冬春欧亚大陆特别是乌拉尔山地区阻高频率偏高,而北大西洋地区阻高频率偏低;春季北太平洋阻高频率偏低。这与模式北半球高纬度地区500 hPa位势高度场气候态偏差有关。BCC-CSM2-MR耦合模式的阻高模拟偏差总体与大气模式类似。但耦合模式中冬季欧亚大陆特别是乌拉尔山地区阻高频率减小、北太平洋春季阻高频率增大,模拟偏差减小。同时,耦合模式能够再现夏季北太平洋东西阻高频率双峰值特征。因此,海气耦合过程有助于改善对欧亚及北太平洋地区阻高频率模拟。阻高频率年际变率受到气候系统内部变率不确定性的较大影响,这也是制约阻高预测水平的重要因素。     

A linear projection for the timing of unprecedented climate in Korea

Recently we have had abnormal weather events worldwide that are attributed by climate scientists to the global warming induced by human activities. If the global warming continues in the future and such events occur more frequently and someday become normal, we will have an unprecedented climate. This study intends to answer when we will have an unprecedented warm climate, focusing more on the regional characteristics of the timing of unprecedented climate. Using an in-situ observational data from weather stations of annual-mean surface air temperature in Korea from 1973 to 2015, we estimate a timing of unprecedented climate with a linear regression method. Based on the in-situ data with statistically significant warming trends at 95% confidence level, an unprecedented climate in Korea is projected to occur first in Cheongju by 2043 and last in Haenam by 2168. This 125-year gap in the timing indicates that a regional difference in timing of unprecedented climate is considerably large in Korea. Despite the high sensitivity of linear estimation to the data period and resolution, our findings on the large regional difference in timing of unprecedented climate can give an insight into making policies for climate change mitigation and adaptation, not only for the central government but for provincial governments.     

集合敏感性分析在北半球中纬度高影响天气中的应用

总结回顾了集合敏感性分析(ESA)在诊断中纬度高影响天气预报不确定性中的应用。作为一个简单高效且不需要大量计算资源的方法,集合敏感性分析主要被应用在中纬度气旋、台风或飓风的温带转换,以及在强对流过程中诊断预报误差和不确定性的来源。集合敏感性方法极有灵活性,可以根据实际需要改变不同的预报变量和初始场。在对2010年美国东岸圣诞节暴风雪的分析中,集合敏感性分析通过三种形式来诊断了预报不确定性的初值敏感性,即基于EOF分析的敏感性、预报差别的敏感性,以及基于短期预报误差的向前积分敏感性回归。三种方法证实气旋路径的不确定性主要和位于美国南部大平原的短波槽初始误差相关。此外,气旋强度的不确定性还和产生于北太平洋向下游延伸的罗斯贝波列相关。集合敏感性分析方法对于分析中纬度气旋的不确定性、诊断初值敏感性、分析误差发展机制都非常有效。集合敏感性分析也被应用于分析台风/飓风的温带气旋转换过程的不确定性。在对2019年美国首个主要登陆台风Dorian的分析中发现,加拿大CMC的集合预报主要不确定性来自于强度的不确定性,而这个不确定性与初始时刻的大尺度环流型有关,较连贯的信号可以追溯至东北太平洋的前倾槽。而NCEP和ECMWF的不确定性主要在于气旋位置的东北—西南向移动,而敏感性主要和飓风系统本身(即其北部低压区和中纬度槽)的锁相有关。分析结果进一步验证了集合敏感性分析对诊断模式之间的不一致性,以及模式成员之间不一致性的不确定性来源和发展过程的可靠性。集合敏感性分析方法综合了集合预报、资料同化和敏感性分析,因此对于资料同化技术改进、诊断模式误差(或者缺陷)、附加(目标)观测最优策略,以及评估观测对预报的影响等都有重要意义。同时可以更有效地利用集合预报信息,帮助预报员提高情景意识,最终减少高影响天气预报中的决策失误。     

夏季北半球中低纬地区热量的垂直输送

本文应用多年平均的风场、垂直速度场和温度场,研究了平均经纬向垂直环流和感热垂直输送的关系.并且讨论了北半球中低纬不同地理区域感热垂直输送的特征. 研究结果表明,夏季北半球中低纬地区感热垂直输送的方向基本上和平均垂直环流的方向相一致.大型定常涡旋对感热输送的高值区和涡旋位能向涡旋动能转化的高值区均在25°—45°N之间的中高空,不同的是后者中心比前者高. 850—200mb之间的对流层中,北半球中低纬有三个感热向上输送的高值区(亚洲大陆及其附近地区,中、东太平洋和大西洋大部分地区)和三个感热向下输送的高值区     

Circulation Indices of the Aleutian Low Pressure System: Definitions and Relationships to Climate Anomalies in the Northern Hemisphere

In this study, a group of indices were defined regarding intensity (P), area (S) and central position (λ^c, Φ^c) of the Aleutian low (AL) in the Northern Hemisphere in winter, using seasonal and monthly mean height field at 1000-hPa. These indices were calculated over 60 winter seasons from 1948/1949 to 2007/2008 using reanalysis data. Climatic and anomalous characteristics of the AL were analyzed based on these indices and relationships between the AL, and general circulations were explored using correlations between indices P, λ^c, and Pacific SST, as well as Northern Hemisphere temperature and precipitation. The main results are these: (1) AL is the strongest in January, when the center shifts to the south and west of its climatological position, and it is the weakest in December when the center shifts to the north and east. (2) AL intensity (P) is negatively correlated with its longitude (λ^c): a deeper low occurs toward the east and a shallower low occurs toward the west. On a decadal scale, the AL has been persistently strong and has shifted eastward since the 1970s, but reversal signs have been observed in recent years. (3) The AL is stronger and is located toward the east during strong El Nino winters and vice versa during strong La Nina years; this tendency is particularly evident after 1975. The AL is also strongly correlated with SST in the North Pacific. It intensifies and moves eastward with negative SST anomalies, and it weakens and moves westward with positive SST anomalies. (4) Maps of significance correlation between AL intensity and Northern Hemisphere temperature and rainfall resemble the PNA teleconnection pattern in mid-latitudes in the North Pacific and across North America. The AL and the Mongolian High are two permanent atmospheric pressure systems adjacent to each other during boreal winter over the middle and high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, but their relationships with the El Nino/La Nina events and with temperature and precipitation in the Northern Hemisphere are significantly different.     

Interannual variability of the winter stratospheric polar vortex in the Northern Hemisphere and their relations to QBO and ENSO

We investigated the interannual variations of the winter stratospheric polar vortex in this paper. EOF analysis shows that two modes of variability dominate the stratospheric polar vortex on interannual timescales. The leading mode (EOF1) reflects the intensity variation of the polar vortex and is characterized by a geopotential height seesaw between the polar region and the mid-latitudes. The second one (EOF2) exhibits variation in the zonal asymmetric part of the polar vortex, which mainly describes the stationary planetary wave activity. As the strongest interannual variation signal in the atmosphere, the QBO has been shown to influence mainly the strength of the polar vortex. On the other hand, the ENSO cycle, as the strongest interannual variation signal in the ocean, has been shown to be mainly associated with the variation of stationary planetary wave activity in the stratosphere. Possible influences of the stratospheric polar vortex on the tropospheric circulation are also discussed in this paper.     

Marine cold-air outbreaks in the future: an assessment of IPCC AR4 model results for the Northern Hemisphere

For many locations around the globe some of the most severe weather is associated with outbreaks of cold air over relatively warm oceans, referred to here as marine cold-air outbreaks (MCAOs). Drawing on empirical evidence, an MCAO indicator is defined here as the difference between the skin potential temperature, which over open ocean is the sea surface potential temperature, and the potential temperature at 700 hPa. Rare MCAOs are defined as the 95th percentile of this indicator. Climate model data that have been provided as part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report Four (AR4) were used to assess the models’ projections for the twenty-first century and their ability to represent the observed climatology of MCAOs. The ensemble average of the models broadly captures the observed spatial distribution of the strength of MCAOs. However, there are some significant differences between the models and observations, which are mainly associated with simulated biases of the underlying sea ice, such as excessive sea-ice extent over the Barents Sea in most of the models. The future changes of the strength of MCAOs vary significantly across the Northern Hemisphere. The largest projected weakening of MCAOs is over the Labrador Sea. Over the Nordic seas the main region of strong MCAOs will move north and weaken slightly as it moves away from the warm tongue of the Gulf Stream in the Norwegian Sea. Over the Sea of Japan there is projected to be only a small weakening of MCAOs. The implications of the results for mesoscale weather systems that are associated with MCAOs, namely polar lows and arctic fronts, are discussed.     

Expected change of hydrologic cycle in Northern Eurasia due to disappearance of multiyear sea ice in the Arctic Ocean

The effects are considered that global warming and rapid sea ice decline in the Arctic (up to the formation of ice-free conditions in the Arctic Ocean in summer) made on the hydrological regime of Northern Eurasia. Ensemble computations of climate are provided and changes in the atmospheric water cycle and in water balance in large catchment areas after the loss of multiyear sea ice in the Arctic are estimated. Considerable changes in the hydrological regime are demonstrated on the example of the large catchments of the Siberian rivers; the changes are especially manifested in the period of intense snow melting, i.e., in spring and in early summer. It is revealed that the increase in the frequency of spring floods is expected in the river catchments adjoining the Arctic Ocean. It is demonstrated that the Arctic Ocean ice reduction does not exert as significant influence on variations in the water cycle in Northern Eurasia as the global warming does.     

Changes in ice phenology characteristics of two Central European steppe lakes from 1926 to 2012 - influences of local weather and large scale oscillation patterns

This paper investigates how the role of climate in tourist destination choice has changed over the last 15 years. To this end, a demand model for international tourism is estimated, including the main classic determinants but allowing a time-varying climatic sensitivity of tourists. Moreover, a complete database considering international tourism movement between 178 countries for the period 1995 to 2010 is used. Results show how turning point temperatures in origin and destination countries have changed over the period of analysis, evidencing a loss of competitiveness for traditional warm destinations. Additionally, using data for the projected growth of Gross Domestic Product per capita and climatic conditions within A2, B1 and B2 scenarios, an updated vision of their expected impact on international tourism flows is assessed, evaluating how climate change would imply a greater loss of attractiveness for traditional warm destinations around the world but would increase attractiveness for high latitude countries.     

2004-11-28～12-04华北等地大雾天气的中尺度分析

对2004年11月28日～12月4日发生在华北及黄河中下游地区的持续性大雾天气进行了中尺度分析,结果发现,地面中尺度辐合线(区)与辐射降温有利于形成辐射雾.此次大雾在持续过程中性质发生了改变,由辐射雾转变为平流雾.若东北地区的地面冷高压中心西侧或南侧另有一小高压环流,通常为一种有利于华北及中东部地区产生或维持大雾天气的环流型,在其南侧及西南侧产生的准地转流和非地转流在华北及黄河中下游地区的交汇为该地区带来了丰沛的水汽.