Interannual variability in the Biannual Rossby waves in the tropical Indian Ocean and its relation to Indian Ocean Dipole and El Nino forcing

The interannual variability of the tropical Indian Ocean is studied using Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) sea surface height anomalies (SSHA) and Hadley Centre Ice Sea Surface Temperature anomalies. Biannual Rossby waves (BRW) were observed along the 1.5° S and 10.5° S latitudes during the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) years. The SODA SSHA and its BRW components were comparable with those of Topex/Poseidon. The phase speed of BRW along 1.5° S is −28 cm/s, which is comparable with the theoretical speed of first mode baroclinic (equatorially trapped) Rossby waves. This is the first study to show that no such propagation is seen along 1.5° S during El Nino years in the absence of IOD. Thus the westward propagating downwelling BRW in the equatorial Indian Ocean is hypothesized as a potential predictor for IOD. These waves transport heat from the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean to west, long before the dipole formation. Along 10.5° S, the BRW formation mechanisms during the El Nino and IOD years were found to be different. The eastern boundary variations along 10.5° S, being localized, do not influence the ocean interior considerably. Major portion of the interannual variability of the thermocline, is caused by the Ekman pumping integrated along the characteristic lines of Rossby waves. The study provides evidence of internal dynamics in the IOD formation. The positive trend in the downwelling BRW (both in SODA and Topex/Poseidon) is of great concern, as it contributes to the Indian Ocean warming.     

Long Wave Resonance in Tropical Oceans and Implications on Climate: the Atlantic Ocean

Based on the well established importance of long, non-dispersive baroclinic Kelvin and Rossby waves, a resonance of tropical planetary waves is demonstrated. Three main basin modes are highlighted through joint wavelet analyses of sea surface height (SSH) and surface current velocity (SCV), scale-averaged over relevant bands to address the co-variability of variables: (1) a 1-year period quasi-stationary wave (QSW) formed from gravest mode baroclinic planetary waves which consists of a northern, an equatorial and a southern antinode, and a major node off the South American coast that straddles the north equatorial current (NEC) and the north equatorial counter current (NECC), (2) a half-a-year period harmonic, (3) an 8-year sub-harmonic. Contrary to what is commonly accepted, the 1-year period QSW is not composed of wind-generated Kelvin and Rossby beams but results from the excitation of a tuned basin mode. Trade winds sustain a free tropical basin mode, the natural frequency of which is tuned to synchronize the excitation and the ridge of the QSWs. The functioning of the 1-year period basin mode is confirmed by solving the momentum equations, expanding in terms of Fourier series both the coefficients and the forcing terms. The terms of Fourier series have singularities, highlighting resonances and the relation between the resonance frequency and the wavenumbers. This ill-posed problem is regularized by considering Rayleigh friction. The waves are supposed to be semi-infinite, i.e. they do not reflect at the western and eastern boundaries of the basin, which would assume the waves vanish at these boundaries. At the western boundary the equatorial Rossby wave is deflected towards the northern antinode while forming the NECC that induces a positive Doppler-shifted wavenumber. At the eastern boundary, the Kelvin wave splits into coastal Kelvin waves that flow mainly southward to leave the Gulf of Guinea. In turn, off-tropical waves extend as an equatorially trapped Kelvin wave, being deflected off the western boundary. The succession of warm and cold waters transferred by baroclinic waves during a cycle leaves the tropical ocean by radiation and contributes to western boundary currents. The main manifestation of the basin modes concerns the variability of the NECC, of the branch of the South Equatorial Current (SEC) along the equator, of the western boundary currents as well as the formation of remote resonances, as will be presented in a future work. Remote resonances occur at midlatitudes, the role of which is suspected of being crucial in the functioning of subtropical gyres and in climate variability.     

Intraseasonal variability of subsurface ocean temperature anomalies in the Indian Ocean during the summer monsoon season

Ocean Dynamics - The present study focuses on the variability of subsurface ocean temperature and associated planetary waves (oceanic Kelvin and Rossby waves) in the Indian Ocean during the boreal...     

Connection of sea level variability between the tropical western Pacific and the southern Indian Ocean during recent two decades

Based on the merged satellite altimeter data and in-situ observations,as well as a diagnosis of linear baroclinic Rossby wave solutions,this study analyzed the rapidly rise of sea level/sea surface height(SSH)in the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans during recent two decades.Results show that the sea level rise signals in the tropical west Pacific and the southeast Indian Ocean are closely linked to each other through the pathways of oceanic waveguide within the Indonesian Seas in the form of thermocline adjustment.The sea level changes in the southeast Indian Ocean are strongly influenced by the low-frequency westward-propagating waves originated in the tropical Pacific,whereas those in the southwest Indian Ocean respond mainly to the local wind forcing.Analyses of the lead-lag correlation further reveal the different origins of interannual and interdecadal variabilities in the tropical Pacific.The interannual wave signals are dominated by the wind variability along the equatorial Pacific,which is associated with the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation;whereas the interdecadal signals are driven mainly by the wind curl off the equatorial Pacific,which is closely related to the Pacific Decadal Oscillation.     

Influences of Indian Ocean interannual variability on different stages of El Nio: A FOAM1.5 model approach

Both the tropical Indian and tropical Pacific Oceans are active atmosphere-ocean interactive regions with robust interannual variability, which also constitutes a linkage between the two basins in the mode of variability. Using a global atmosphereocean coupled model, we conducted two experiments(CTRL and PC) to explore the contributions of Indian Ocean interannual sea surface temperature(SST) modes to the occurrence of El Ni?o events. The results show that interannual variability of the SST in the Indian Ocean induces a rapid growth of El Ni?o events during the boreal autumn in an El Ni?o developing year. However, it weakens El Ni?o events or even promotes cold phase conversions in an El Ni?o decaying year. Therefore, the entire period of the El Ni?o is shortened by the interannual variations of the Indian Ocean SST. Specifically, during the El Ni?o developing years, the positive Indian Ocean Dipole(IOD) events force an anomalous Walker circulation, which then enhances the existing westerly wind anomalies over the west Pacific. This will cause a warmer El Ni?o event, with some modulations by ocean advection and oceanic Rossby and Kelvin waves. However, with the onset of the South Asian monsoon, the Indian Ocean Basin(IOB) warming SST anomalies excite low level easterly wind anomalies over the west tropical Pacific during the El Ni?o decaying years. As a result, the El Ni?o event is prompted to change from a warm phase to a cold phase. At the same time, an associated atmospheric anticyclone anomaly appears and leads to a decreasing precipitation anomaly over the northwest Pacific. In summary, with remote forcing in the atmospheric circulation, the IOD mode usually affects the El Ni?o during the developing years, whereas the IOB mode affects the El Ni?o during the decaying years.     

Seasonal and interannual patterns of sea surface temperature in Banda Sea as revealed by self-organizing map

Seasonal and interannual variations of sea surface temperature (SST) in the Banda Sea are studied for the period of January 1985 through December 2007. A neural network pattern recognition approach based on self-organizing map (SOM) has been applied to monthly SST from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) Oceans Pathfinder. The principal conclusions of this paper are outlined as follows. There are three different patterns associated with the variations in the monsoonal winds: the southeast and northwest monsoon patterns, and the monsoon-break patterns. The southeast monsoon pattern is characterized by low SST due to the prevailing southeasterly winds that drive Ekman upwelling. The northwest monsoon pattern, on the other hand, is one of high SST distributed uniformly in space. The monsoon-break pattern is a transitional pattern between the northwest and southeast monsoon patterns, which is characterized by moderate SST patterns. On interannual time-scale, the SST variations are significantly influenced by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) phenomena. Low SST is observed during El Niño and/or positive IOD events, while high SST appears during La Niña event. Low SST in the Banda Sea during positive IOD event is induced by upwelling Kelvin waves generated in the equatorial Indian Ocean which propagate along the southern coast of Sumatra and Java before entering the Banda Sea through the Lombok and Ombai Straits as well as through the Timor Passage. On the other hand, during El Niño (La Niña) events, upwelling (downwelling) Rossby waves associated with off-equatorial divergence (convergence) in response to the equatorial westerly (easterly) winds in the Pacific, partly scattered into the Indonesian archipelago which in turn induce cool (warm) SST in the Banda Sea.     

Two modes of dipole events in tropical Indian Ocean

By analyzing the distributions of subsurface temperature and the surface wind stress anomalies in the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans during the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) events, two major modes of the IOD and their formation mechanisms are revealed. (1) The subsurface temperature anomaly (STA) in the tropical Indian Ocean during the IOD events can be described as a “<” -shaped and west-east-oriented dipole pattern; in the east side of the “<” pattern, a notable tongue-like STA extends westward along the equator in the tropical eastern Indian Ocean; while in the west side of the “<” pattern, the STA has opposite sign with two centers (the southern one is stronger than the northern one in intensity) being of rough symmetry about the equator in the tropical mid-western Indian Ocean. (2) The IOD events are composed of two modes, which have similar spatial pattern but different temporal variabilities due to the large scale air-sea interactions within two independent systems. The first mode of the IOD event originates from the air-sea interaction on a scale of the tropical Pacific-Indian Ocean and coexists with ENSO. The second mode originates from the air-sea interaction on a scale of the tropical Indian Ocean and is closely associated with changes in the position and intensity of the Mascarene high pressure. The strong IOD event occurs when the two modes are in phase, and the IOD event weakens or disappears when the two modes are out of phase. Besides, the IOD events are normally strong when either of the two modes is strong. (3) The IOD event is caused by the abnormal wind stress forcing over the tropical Indian Ocean, which results in vertical transports, leading to the upwelling and pileup of seawater. This is the main dynamic processes resulting in the STA. When the anomalous easterly exists over the equatorial Indian Ocean, the cold waters upwell in the tropical eastern Indian Ocean while the warm waters pileup in the tropical western Indian Ocean, hence the thermocline in the tropical Indian Ocean is shallowed in the east and deepened in the west. The off-equator component due to the Coriolis force in the equatorial area causes the upwelling of cold waters and the shallowing of the equatorial India Ocean thermocline. On the other hand, the anomalous anticyclonic circulations and their curl fields located on both sides of the equator, cause the pileup of warm waters in the central area of their curl fields and the deepening of the equatorial Indian Ocean thermocline off the equator. The above three factors lead to the occurrence of positive phase IOD events. When anomalous westerly dominates over the tropical Indian Ocean, the dynamic processes are reversed, and the negative-phase IOD event occurs. Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40776013), National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2006CB403601) and the Knowledge Innovation Project of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KZCX-SW-222)     

The mechanism of the effects of the upwelling mean on the ENSO event mature phase locking

The mechanism of the effects of the upwelling mean on the ENSO event mature phase locking is ex-amined by using a mixed-mode model. The results show that the positive feedback process of the ef-fects of the seasonal variation of the upwelling mean on the Kelvin wave is the mechanism of the locking of the event mature phase to the end of the calendar year. The memory of the Rossby waves for the sign-shifting of the sea surface temperature anomaly from positive to negative 6 months before the cold peak time is the other mechanism of the locking of the La Nia event mature phase to the end of the calendar year. The results here are different from previous ones which suggest that the balance between cold and warm trends of sea surface temperature anomaly is the mechanism involved. The cold trend is caused by the upwelling Kelvin wave from upwelling Rossby wave reflected at the western boundary, excited by the westerly anomaly stress over the central Pacific and amplified by the seasonal variation of the coupled strength in its way propagating westward. The warm trend is caused by the Kelvin wave forced by the western wind stress over the middle and eastern equatorial Pacific. The cause of the differences is due to the opposite phase of the seasonal variation of the upwelling mean to that in the observation and an improper parameterization scheme for the effects of the seasonal varia-tion of the upwelling mean on the ENSO cycle in previous studies.     

南印度洋副热带偶极模在ENSO事件中的作用

南印度洋副热带偶极模（Subtropical Dipole Pattern,SDP）是印度洋存在的另一种很明显的偶极型海温差异现象,在年际和年代际尺度上均有十分明显的表现.而目前有关印度洋海气相互作用的研究主要集中在赤道印度洋地区,针对南印度洋地区的工作还比较少,特别是有关南印度洋海温与ENSO（El NiDo-Southern Oscillation）事件关系的研究.本文初步探讨了年际尺度上南印度洋副热带偶极型海温变化差异与ENSO事件的关系,发现SDP与ENSO事件有密切的联系,SDP事件就像连接正负ENSO位相转换的一个中间环节,SDP事件前后期ENSO的位相刚好完全相反.进一步,本文通过分析SDP事件前后期海温、高低层风、低层辐合辐散、高空云量和辐射等的变化特征研究了南印度洋偶极型海温异常在ENSO事件中的作用,结果表明：SDP在ENSO事件中的作用不仅涉及海气相互作用的正负反馈过程,还与热带和副热带大气环流之间的相互作用有关,特别是与东南印度洋海温变化所引起的异常纬向风由赤道印度洋向赤道太平洋传播的过程等有十分直接的关系;同时,SDP对ENSO事件的影响在很大程度上还依赖于大尺度平均气流随季节的变换.     

Influence of Pacific on Southern Indian Ocean Rossby Waves

The sea-surface height anomalies derived from Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) during 1958–2001, Topex/Poseidon satellite during 1993–2001 and the SODA heat content anomalies (125 m depth) during 1958–2001 are filtered into annual and biennial Rossby wave components using a two-dimensional Finite Impulse Response filter. The filtered Rossby wave components (both annual and biennial) in the southern Pacific and Indian Oceans have considerable strength and variability. The propagation of annual and biennial Rossby waves in the Indonesian through-flow region [12.5°S–7.5°S] of the Indian Ocean is in phase with the southern Pacific Ocean waves. So it is speculated that the Pacific Ocean influences the Indian Ocean, especially through the region 17.5°S to 7.5°S and thus the southern Pacific Rossby waves could be an unexplored contributor to the Indian Ocean Rossby waves. We also carried out Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) and wavelet analysis on the tide gauge sea-level data along the Australian coast to support our claim. Filtered annual and biennial components of SODA heat content anomalies (125 m depth) also support these findings.     

Diagnosing vertical motion in the Equatorial Atlantic

Estimating the vertical velocity (w) in the oceanic upper-layers is a key issue for understanding the cold tongue development in the Eastern Equatorial Atlantic. In this methodological paper, we develop an expanded and general formulation of the vertical velocity equation based on the primitive equation (PE) system, in order to gain new insight into the physical processes responsible for the Equatorial and Angola upwellings. This approach is more accurate for describing the real ocean than simpler considerations based on just the wind-driven patterns of surface layer divergence. The w-sources/forcings are derived from the PE w-equation and diagnosed from a realistic ocean simulation of the Equatorial Atlantic. Sources of w are numerous and express the high complexity of terms related to the turbulent momentum flux, to the circulation and to the mass fields, some of them depending explicitly on w and others not. The equatorial upwelling is found to be mainly induced by the (i) the zonal turbulent momentum flux, (ii) the curl of turbulent momentum flux and (iii) the imbalance between the circulation and the pressure fields. The Angola upwelling in the eastern part of the basin is controlled by strong curl of turbulent momentum flux. A strong cross-regulation is evidenced between the w-forcings independent of w and dependent on w, which suggests an equatorial balanced-dynamics. The w-forcing depending on w represents the negative feedback of the ocean to the w-forcing independent of w: in the equatorial band, this adjustment is led by non-linear processes and by vortex stretching outside.     

An intermediate coupled model for the tropical ocean-atmosphere system

An intermediate ocean-atmosphere coupled model is developed to simulate and predict the tropical interannual variability. Originating from the basic physical framework of the Zebiak-Cane(ZC) model, this tropical intermediate couple model(TICM) extends to the entire global tropics, with a surface heat flux parameterization and a surface wind bias correction added to improve model performance and inter-basin connections. The model well reproduces the variabilities in the tropical Pacific and Indian basins. The simulated El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation(ENSO) shows a period of 3–4 years and an amplitude of about 2°C, similar to those observed. The variabilities in the Indian Ocean, including the Indian Ocean basin mode(IOBM) and the Indian Ocean Dipole(IOD), are also reasonably captured with a realistic relationship to the Pacific. However, the tropical Atlantic variability in the TICM has a westward bias and is overly influenced by the tropical Pacific. A 47-year hindcast experiment using the TICM for the period of 1970–2016 indicates that ENSO is the most predictable mode in the tropics. Skillful predictions of ENSO can be made one year ahead, similar to the skill of the latest version of the ZC model, while a "spring predictability barrier" still exists as in other models. In the tropical Indian Ocean, the predictability seems much higher in the west than in the east. The correlation skill of IOD prediction reaches 0.5 at a 5-month lead, which is comparable to that of the state-of-the-art coupled general circulation models. The prediction of IOD shows a significant "winter-spring predictability barrier", implying combined influences from the tropical Pacific and the local sea-air interaction in the eastern Indian Ocean. The TICM has little predictive skill in the equatorial Atlantic for lead times longer than 3 months, which is a common problem of current climate models badly in need of further investigation.     

热带太平洋-印度洋温跃层海温异常联合模及其演变

利用SODA次表层海温再分析资料和卫星遥感海面高度异常数据,分析了热带太平洋和印度洋温跃层海温之间的联系,提出了太平洋-印度洋温跃层海温异常联合模(PITM)的概念、并定义了该联合模指数.结果表明,联合模指数具有准两年和3~5年的年际变化周期以及2011-2012年的年际变化周期,并具有季节锁相和振幅不对称等特征.联合模的演变过程与温跃层海温异常(TOTA)的发展和传播过程紧密相联:在太平洋,TOTA一般从西太平洋出发沿赤道(5°S-5°N)向东传播,到达东太平洋之后折向北,再沿10°N-14°N纬度带向西传播到达太平洋西岸并向赤道西太平洋扩展,形成一条回路;南太平洋也有类似回路但信号较弱;在印度洋,则主要沿8°S-12°S纬度带向西传播,到达西岸后折向北,然后迅速沿赤道(1.25°S-1.25°N)向东扩展,也形成一条回路.对NCEP/NCAR再分析风场资料的合成分析则表明,联合模的演变过程与大气环流尤其是纬向垂直环流(Walker环流)的变化密切相关,联合模的正位相对应着赤道印度洋区域顺时针的Walker环流以及赤道太平洋区域逆时针的Walker环流;而联合模的负相位则有相反的情况.此外,联合模演变过程中,TOTA的传播发展与850 hPa异常纬向风的传播发展有很好的相关.     

Planetary wave coupling (5–6-day waves) in the low-latitude atmosphere–ionosphere system

Vertical coupling in the low-latitude atmosphere–ionosphere system driven by the 5-day Rossby W1 and 6-day Kelvin E1 waves in the low-latitude MLT region has been investigated. Three different types of data were analysed in order to detect and extract the ∼6-day wave signals. The National Centres for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) geopotential height and zonal wind data at two pressure levels, 30 and 10 hPa, were used to explore the features of the ∼6-day waves present in the stratosphere during the period from 1 July to 31 December 2004. The ∼6-day wave activity was identified in the neutral MLT winds by radar measurements located at four equatorial and three tropical stations. The ∼6-day variations in the ionospheric electric currents (registered by perturbations in the geomagnetic field) were detected in the data from 26 magnetometer stations situated at low latitudes. The analysis shows that the global ∼6-day Kelvin E1 and ∼6-day Rossby W1 waves observed in the low-latitude MLT region are most probably vertically propagating from the stratosphere. The global ∼6-day W1 and E1 waves seen in the ionospheric electric currents are caused by the simultaneous ∼6-day wave activity in the MLT region. The main forcing agent in the equatorial MLT region seems to be the waves themselves, whereas in the tropical MLT region the modulated tides are also of importance.     

Can a minimalist model of wind forced baroclinic Rossby waves produce reasonable results?

The linear theory predicts that Rossby waves are the large scale mechanism of adjustment to perturbations of the geophysical fluid. Satellite measurements of sea level anomaly (SLA) provided sturdy evidence of the existence of these waves. Recent studies suggest that the variability in the altimeter records is mostly due to mesoscale nonlinear eddies and challenges the original interpretation of westward propagating features as Rossby waves. The objective of this work is to test whether a classic linear dynamic model is a reasonable explanation for the observed SLA. A linear-reduced gravity non-dispersive Rossby wave model is used to estimate the SLA forced by direct and remote wind stress. Correlations between model results and observations are up to 0.88. The best agreement is in the tropical region of all ocean basins. These correlations decrease towards insignificance in mid-latitudes. The relative contributions of eastern boundary (remote) forcing and local wind forcing in the generation of Rossby waves are also estimated and suggest that the main wave forming mechanism is the remote forcing. Results suggest that linear long baroclinic Rossby wave dynamics explain a significant part of the SLA annual variability at least in the tropical oceans.     

北太平洋海表面高度的年际变化及其机制

利用15年（1993～2007年）月平均的海表面高度（SSH）异常资料,分析了北太平洋海表面高度的年际变化的时空结构,并研究了热通量和风应力两个因子对其的强迫作用.结果表明,北太平洋年际时间尺度SSH变化的大值区在黑潮延伸区和西太平洋暖池区.EOF分解第一模态的空间结构沿纬向呈带状分布,第二模态为沿经向呈带状分布.热通量强迫作用在中纬度的东北太平洋可以解释SSH年际变化40%以上.风应力对SSH的作用包括正压和斜压两个方面.正压Sverdrup平衡模型模拟的SSH年际变化较弱,仅能解释高纬度副极地环流西部的20%~40%.由大尺度风应力强迫的第一阶斜压Rossby波模型可以解释热带地区的20%~60%,中纬度中部的20%~40%,以及阿拉斯加环流东部和副极地环流西部的20%~60%.风应力强迫的一阶斜压Rossby波模型对SSH的强迫机理又可分为局地风应力强迫和西传Rossby波作用.其中,风应力的局地强迫作用（Ekman抽吸）在东北太平洋、白令海以及热带中部有显著的预报技巧,可以解释SSH年际变异的40%以上.Rossby波的传播作用在中纬度海域的副热带环流中西部和夏威夷岛以东起着重要作用,可解释20%~60%.     

Reflection of equatorial Kelvin waves at eastern ocean boundaries Part I: hypothetical boundaries

A baroclinic shallow-water model is developed to investigate the effect of the orientation of the eastern ocean boundary on the behavior of equatorial Kelvin waves. The model is formulated in a spherical polar coordinate system and includes dissipation and non-linear terms, effects which have not been previously included in analytical approaches to the problem. Both equatorial and middle latitude response are considered given the large latitudinal extent used in the model. Baroclinic equatorial Kelvin waves of intraseasonal, seasonal and annual periods are introduced into the domain as pulses of finite width. Their subsequent reflection, transmission and dissipation are investigated. It is found that dissipation is very important for the transmission of wave energy along the boundary and for reflections from the boundary. The dissipation was found to be dependent not only on the presence of the coastal Kelvin waves in the domain, but also on the period of these coastal waves. In particular the dissipation increases with wave period. It is also shown that the equatorial β-plane approximation can allow an anomalous generation of Rossby waves at higher latitudes. Nonlinearities generally have a small effect on the solutions, within the confines of this model.     

Relationship between sea surface salinity and ocean circulation and climate change

Based on Argo sea surface salinity(SSS) and the related precipitation(P), evaporation(E), and sea surface height data sets, the climatological annual mean and low-frequency variability in SSS in the global ocean and their relationship with ocean circulation and climate change were analyzed. Meanwhile, together with previous studies, a brief retrospect and prospect of seawater salinity were given in this work. Freshwater flux(E-P) dominated the mean pattern of SSS, while the dynamics of ocean circulation modulated the spatial structure and low-frequency variability in SSS in most regions. Under global warming, the trend in SSS indicated the intensification of the global hydrological cycle, and featured a decreasing trend at low and high latitudes and an increasing trend in subtropical regions. In the most recent two decades, global warming has slowed down, which is called the"global warming hiatus". The trend in SSS during this phase, which was different to that under global warming, mainly indicated the response of the ocean surface to the decadal and multi-decadal variability in the climate system, referring to the intensification of the Walker Circulation. The significant contrast of SSS trends between the western Pacific and the southeastern Indian Ocean suggested the importance of oceanic dynamics in the cross-basin interaction in recent decades. Ocean Rossby waves and the Indonesian Throughflow contributed to the freshening trend in SSS in the southeastern Indian Ocean, while the increasing trend in the southeastern Pacific and the decreasing trend in the northern Atlantic implied a long-term linear trend under global warming. In the future, higher resolution SSS data observed by satellites, together with Argo observations, will help to extend our knowledge on the dynamics of mesoscale eddies, regional oceanography, and climate change.     

ENSO and the natural variability in the flow of tropical rivers

This paper examines the relationship between the annual discharges of the Amazon, Congo, Paran á, and Nile rivers and the sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies of the eastern and central equatorial Pacific Ocean, an index of El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Since river systems are comprehensive integrators of rainfall over large areas, accurate characterization of the flow regimes in major rivers will increase our understanding of large-scale global atmospheric dynamics. Results of this study reveal that the annual discharges of two large equatorial tropical rivers, the Amazon and the Congo, are weakly and negatively correlated with the equatorial Pacific SST anomalies with 10% of the variance in annual discharge explained by ENSO. Two smaller subtropical rivers, the Nile and the Paraná, show a correlation that is stronger by about a factor of 2. The Nile discharge is negatively correlated with the SST anomaly, whereas the Paraná river discharge shows a positive relation. The tendency for reduced rainfall/discharge over large tropical convection zones in the ENSO warm phase is attributed to global scale subsidence associated with major upwelling in the eastern Pacific Ocean.     

切变基本纬向流中非线性赤道Rossby长波

为了解决观测和理论研究中的一些问题以及更好地了解热带大气动力学 ,有必要进一步研究基本气流的变化对大气中赤道Rossby波动的影响 .本文研究分析基本气流对赤道Rossby长波的影响 ,利用一个简单赤道 β平面浅水模式和摄动法 ,研究纬向基本气流切变中非线性赤道Rossby波 ,推导出在切变基本纬向流中赤道Rossby长波振幅演变所满足的非线性KdV方程并得到其孤立波解 .分析表明 ,孤立波存在的必要条件是基本气流有切变 ,而且基流切变不能太强 ,否则将产生正压不稳定 .