Impact of local sea surface temperature anomaly over the western North Pacific on extreme East Asian summer monsoon

In this study, the anomalous characteristics of observed large-scale synoptic fields in the extreme East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) years are analyzed, and the impact of the local sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly over the western North Pacific (WNP) on the extreme EASM is investigated through sensitivity experiments of 28?years EASM simulations to the local SST over the WNP. The observation analysis reveals that the extreme EASM is influenced more by anomalous large-scale atmospheric features such as monsoon circulations and the western North Pacific subtropical high than the local SST anomaly over the WNP. However, the results of the sensitivity experiments show that the local SST anomaly has an implicit impact on the extreme EASM. The patterns of differences in precipitation between the experiment forced by observed SST in each year and the experiment forced by climatological SST over the WNP are opposite to anomaly patterns of observed precipitation in the extreme EASM years. This is because the SST anomaly over the WNP plays a role in reducing precipitation anomaly by changing surface latent heat flux and monsoon circulations. In particular, the local SST anomaly over the WNP decreases anomalies of large-scale circulations, i.e., the local Hadley and the Walker circulations. Thus, the local SST anomaly over the WNP plays a role in decreasing the interannual variability of the EASM.     

Impact of the North Atlantic sea surface temperature tripole on the East Asian summer monsoon

A strong (weak) East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) is usually concurrent with the tripole pattern of North Atlantic SST anomalies on the interannual timescale during summer, which has positive (negative) SST anomalies in the northwestern North Atlantic and negative (positive) SST anomalies in the subpolar and tropical ocean. The mechanisms responsible for this linkage are diagnosed in the present study. It is shown that a barotropic wave-train pattern occurring over the Atlantic-Eurasia region likely acts as a link between the EASM and the SST tripole during summer. This wave-train pattern is concurrent with geopotential height anomalies over the Ural Mountains, which has a substantial effect on the EASM. Diagnosis based on observations and linear dynamical model results reveals that the mechanism for maintaining the wave-train pattern involves both the anomalous diabatic heating and synoptic eddy-vorticity forcing. Since the North Atlantic SST tripole is closely coupled with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the relationships between these two factors and the EASM are also examined. It is found that the connection of the EASM with the summer SST tripole is sensitive to the meridional location of the tripole, which is characterized by large seasonal variations due to the north-south movement of the activity centers of the NAO. The SST tripole that has a strong relationship with the EASM appears to be closely coupled with the NAO in the previous spring rather than in the simultaneous summer.     

东亚冬夏季风关系在1970s末的年代际转变

利用NCEP/NCAR和Hadley中心的大气与海洋再分析资料,选取具有代表性的东亚冬、夏季风指数,采用滑动相关和线性回归等方法,主要讨论了受ENSO影响的东亚冬季风分量和后期夏季风之间关系的年代际变化,并分析了二者关系发生变化的原因。结果表明:在1965—1979年,受ENSO影响的冬季风与后期夏季风强度的对应关系并不明显。在1980—2004年,受ENSO影响的冬季风强,对应后期的夏季风偏弱,弱冬季风对应的后期夏季风偏强。当受ENSO影响的冬季风较强时,冬季在对流层低层西北太平洋出现了异常气旋并可以维持到次年夏季,低纬地区位势高度偏低,削弱了西太平洋副热带高压,异常气旋西部的偏北气流阻碍了西南风的北进,导致夏季风偏弱。海表温度异常在1980年前后春、夏季不同的分布型可以解释环流在不同时段内的差异。     

前秋墨西哥湾流延伸区海温与东亚冬季风关系的年代际变化

利用NCEP/NCAR再分析资料、哈德莱环流中心海表温度资料,研究了墨西哥湾流延伸区海温与东亚冬季风关系的年代际变化及可能原因。结果表明,秋季纽芬兰东南侧的墨西哥湾流延伸区海温与东亚冬季风联系在1970s中后期发生明显年代际突变,由1948—1976(P1)显著正相关变为1980—2012(P2)时段的不显著负相关。同时,与湾延区海温相联系的环流系统在P1和P2时段改变明显:P1时段湾延区海温偏高,冬季500 hPa位势高度场乌拉尔以东地区为大范围显著正异常,日本上空东亚大槽加深,东亚沿岸产生显著偏北风;而P2时段湾延区海温偏高,贝加尔湖上空为不显著负异常位势高度,东亚大槽区为弱的正异常,东亚沿岸有不显著偏南风异常。造成该突变的可能原因是P1时段湾延区海温偏高容易激发出北大西洋到东亚"正、负、正、负"的异常波列,且该异常中心与正位相欧亚遥相关(EU)波列的异常中心位置基本一致,位相叠加加强了正EU,进而造成东亚冬季风的异常强劲。而P2阶段从西欧到东亚沿岸呈现不显著的类似负位相EU波列,且异常中心与EU波列的异常中心位置有偏差,导致其与东亚冬季风关系相对于P1阶段发生了由显著正相关到不显著负相关的转变。     

Phase transition of the Pacific decadal oscillation and decadal variation of the East Asian summer monsoon in the 20th century

This paper focuses on the relationship between the phase transition of the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) and decadal variation of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) in the twentieth century. The first transition occurred in the 1940s, with an enhanced SST in the North Pacific and reduced SST in the tropical eastern Pacific and South Indian Ocean. In agreement with these SST changes, a higher SLP was found in most parts of the Pacific, while a lower SLP was found in the North Pacific and most parts of the Indian Ocean. In this case, the EASM was largely enhanced with a southerly anomaly in the lower troposphere along the east coast of China. Correspondingly, there was less rainfall in the Yangtze River valley and more rainfall in northern and southern China. An opposite change was found when the PDO reversed its phase in the late 1970s. In the tropical Indian Ocean and western Pacific, however, the SST was enhanced in both the 1940s and 1970s. As a result, the western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH) tended to extend westward with a larger magnitude in the 1970s. The major features were reasonably reproduced by an atmospheric general circulation model (IAP AGCM4.0) prescribed with observed SST and sea ice. On the other hand, the westward extension of the WPSH was exaggerated in the 1970s, while it was underestimated in the 1940s. Besides, the spatial pattern of the simulated summer rainfall in eastern China tended to shift southward compared with the observation.     

Interdecadal variability of the relationship between the East Asian winter monsoon and ENSO

Summary The authors examine relationships between the East Asian winter monsoon and the ENSO, particularly on the interdecadal timescales. Based on the analyses of SLP data from 1899 to 1997, the East-Asian winter monsoon index (WMI) is defined as the zonal difference of SLP between ∼120° E and ∼160° E. It is found that 18 out of 28 strong winter monsoon years are either before the development of an El Ni?o or during the decaying La Ni?a event, 12 out of 28 weak winter monsoon are before the development of a La Ni?a or during the decaying El Ni?o event. There is a significant positive correlation coefficient value of about 0.49 between the normalized 11-yr running mean of WMI and ENSO index, however, the WMI-ENSO relationship is not consistently highly correlated. The temporal evolution of correlation between WMI and ENSO indices in both 11-yr and 21-yr moving window shows that the WMI-ENSO relationship clearly undergo low-frequency oscillation. Obviously, both observational and IPSL air-sea coupled modeling WMI index has a near-decadal peak with PDO timescales and internal peaks with ENSO timescales by applying the Multitaper method. Moreover, the cross wavelet and wavelet coherence analysis of WMI/ENSO indicate that there is a larger significant sections with an in phase behavior between WMI and ENSO at period of 20–30 yrs, suggesting that the interdecadal variation of the WMI-ENSO relationship might exist.     

Simple metrics for representing East Asian winter monsoon variability: Urals blocking and western Pacific teleconnection patterns

Instead of conventional East Asian winter monsoon indices(EAWMIs), we simply use two large-scale teleconnection patterns to represent long-term variations in the EAWM. First, the Urals blocking pattern index(UBI) is closely related to cold air advection from the high latitudes towards western Siberia, such that it shows an implicit linkage with the Siberian high intensity and the surface air temperature(SAT) variations north of 40?N in the EAWM region. Second, the well-known western Pacific teleconnection index(WPI) is connected with the meridional displacement of the East Asian jet stream and the East Asian trough. This is strongly related to the SAT variations in the coastal area south of 40?N in the EAWM region.The temperature variation in the EAWM region is also represented by the two dominant temperature modes, which are called the northern temperature mode(NTM) and the southern temperature mode(STM). Compared to 19 existing EAWMIs and other well-known teleconnection patterns, the UBI shows the strongest correlation with the NTM, while the WPI shows an equally strong correlation with the STM as four EAWMIs. The UBI–NTM and WPI–STM relationships are robust when the correlation analysis is repeated by(1) the 31-year running correlation and(2) the 8-year high-pass and low-pass filter. Hence,these results are useful for analyzing the large-scale teleconnections of the EAWM and for evaluating this issue in climate models. In particular, more studies should focus on the teleconnection patterns over extratropical Eurasia.     

Sahel rainfall and decadal to multi-decadal sea surface temperature variability

Decadal Sahelian rainfall variability was mainly driven by sea surface temperatures (SSTs) during the twentieth century. At the same time SSTs showed a marked long-term global warming (GW) trend. Superimposed on this long-term trend decadal and multi-decadal variability patterns are observed like the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) and the inter-decadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO). Using an atmospheric general circulation model we investigate the relative contribution of each component to the Sahelian precipitation variability. To take into account the uncertainty related to the use of different SST data sets, we perform the experiments using HadISST1 and ERSSTv3 reconstructed sets. The simulations show that all three SST signals have a significant impact over West Africa: the positive phases of the GW and the IPO lead to drought over the Sahel, while a positive AMO enhances Sahel rainfall. The tropical SST warming is the main cause for the GW impact on Sahel rainfall. Regarding the AMO, the pattern of anomalous precipitation is established by the SSTs in the Atlantic and Mediterranean basins. In turn, the tropical SST anomalies control the impact of the IPO component on West Africa. Our results suggest that the low-frequency evolution of Sahel rainfall can be interpreted as the competition of three factors: the effect of the GW, the AMO and the IPO. Following this interpretation, our results show that 50% of the SST-driven Sahel drought in the 1980s is explained by the change to a negative phase of the AMO, and that the GW contribution was 10%. In addition, the partial recovery of Sahel rainfall in recent years was mainly driven by the AMO.     

Seasonal evolution mechanism of the East Asian winter monsoon and its interannual variability

This study investigates the space–time evolution of the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM) and its relationship with other climate subsystems. Cyclostationary Empirical Orthogonal Function (CSEOF) analysis and the multiple regression method are used to delineate the detailed evolution of various atmospheric and surface variables in connection with the EAWM. The 120 days of winter (November 17–March 16) per year over 62 years (1948–2010) are analyzed using the NCEP daily reanalysis dataset. The first CSEOF mode of 850-hPa temperatures depicts the seasonal evolution of the EAWM. The contrast in heat capacity between the continent and the northwestern Pacific results in a differential heating in the lower troposphere. Its temporal evolution drives the strengthening and weakening of the Siberian High and the Aleutian Low. The anomalous sea level pressure pattern dictates anomalous circulation, in compliance with the geostrophic relationship. Thermal advection, in addition to net surface radiation, partly contributes to temperature variations in winter. Latent and sensible heat fluxes (thermal forcing from the ocean to the atmosphere) increase with decreased thermal advection. Anomalous upper-level circulation is closely linked to the low-level temperature anomaly in terms of the thermal wind equation. The interannual variability of the seasonal cycle of the EAWM is strongly controlled by the relative strength of the Siberian High to the Aleutian Low. A stronger than normal gradient between the two pressure systems amplifies the seasonal cycle of the EAWM. The EAWM seasonal cycle in the mid-latitude region exhibits a weak negative correlation with the Arctic Oscillation and the East Atlantic/West Russia indices.     

Evaluation of the twentieth century reanalysis dataset in describing East Asian winter monsoon variability

The Twentieth Century Reanalysis （20thCR） dataset released in 2010 covers the period 1871-2010 and is one of the longest reanalysis datasets available worldwide. Using ERA-40, ERA-Interim and NCEP-NCAR reanalysis data, as well as HadSLP2 data and meteorological temperature records over eastern China, the performances of 20thCR in reproducing the spatial patterns and temporal variability of the East Asian winter monsoon （EAWM） are examined. Results indicate that 20thCR data： （1） can accurately reproduce the most typical configuration patterns of all sub-factors differences in the main circulation fields over East Asia involved in the EAWM system, albeit with some in comparison to ERA-40 reanalysis data; （2） is reliable and stable in describing the temporal variability of EAWM since the 1930s; and （3） can describe the high-frequency variability of EAWM better than the low-frequency fluctuations, especially in the early period. In conclusion, caution should be taken when using 20thCR data to study interdecadal variabilities or long-term trends of the EAWM, especially prior to the 1930s.     

Seasonal scale variability of the East Asian winter monsoon and the development of a two-dimensional monsoon index

This study investigates the seasonal scale variability of the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM), which is distinguished from the seasonal cycle with temporal variation throughout winter. Winters lasting 120 days (Nov. 17–Mar. 16) for a period of 64 years from the NCEP daily reanalysis data set are used to study the seasonal scale variability of the EAWM. Cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function (CSEOF) analysis is adopted to decompose the variability of the EAWM. The second CSEOF mode of 850-hPa temperature exhibits a seasonal scale variation, the physical mechanism of which is explained in terms of physically consistent variations of temperature, geopotential height, sea level pressure, wind, and surface heat fluxes. The seasonal-scale EAWM exhibits a weak subseasonal and a strong interannual variability and has gradually weakened during the 64 years. In a weak EAWM phase, the land-sea contrast of sea level pressure declines in East Asia. Consistent with this change, low-level winds decrease and warm thermal advection increases over the eastern part of mid-latitude East Asia. Latent and sensible heat fluxes are reduced significantly over the marginal seas in East Asia. However, during a strong EAWM phase, the physical conditions in East Asia reverse. A large fraction of the variability of the EAWM is explained by the seasonal cycle and the seasonal scale variation. A two-dimensional EAWM index was developed to explain these two distinct components of the EAWM variability. The new index appears to be suitable for measuring both the subseasonal and the interannual variability of the EAWM.     

Pacific decadal oscillation and variability of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Recent studies have furnished evidence for interdecadal variability in the tropical Pacific Ocean. The importance of this phenomenon in causing persistent anomalies over different regions of the globe has drawn considerable attention in view of its relevance in climate assessment. Here, we examine multi-source climate records in order to identify possible signatures of this longer time scale variability on the Indian summer monsoon. The findings indicate a coherent inverse relationship between the inter-decadal fluctuations of Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature (SST) and the Indian monsoon rainfall during the last century. A warm (cold) phase of the Pacific interdecadal variability is characterized by a decrease (increase) in the monsoon rainfall and a corresponding increase (decrease) in the surface air temperature over the Indian subcontinent. This interdecadal relationship can also be confirmed from the teleconnection patterns evident from long-period sea level pressure (SLP) dataset. The SLP anomalies over South and Southeast Asia and the equatorial west Pacific are dynamically consistent in showing an out-of-phase pattern with the SLP anomalies over the tropical central-eastern Pacific. The remote influence of the Pacific interdecadal variability on the monsoon is shown to be associated with prominent signals in the tropical and southern Indian Ocean indicative of coherent inter-basin variability on decadal time scales. If indeed, the atmosphere–ocean coupling associated with the Pacific interdecadal variability is independent from that of the interannual El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), then the climate response should depend on the evolutionary characteristics of both the time scales. It is seen from our analysis that the Indian monsoon is more vulnerable to drought situations, when El Niño events occur during warm phases of the Pacific interdecadal variability. Conversely, wet monsoons are more likely to prevail, when La Niña events coincide during cold phases of the Pacific interdecadal variability.     

Potential impacts of East Asian winter monsoon on climate variability and predictability in the Australian summer monsoon region

This study explores potential impacts of the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM) on summer climate variability and predictability in the Australia–Asian region through Australia–Asia (A-A) monsoon interactions. Observational analysis is conducted for the period of 1959 to 2001 using ERA-40 wind reanalysis and Climate Research Unit rainfall and surface temperature monthly datasets. Statistically significant correlations are established between the Australian summer monsoon and its rainfall variations with cross-equatorial flows penetrating from South China Sea region and northerly flow in the EAWM. The underlying mechanism for such connections is the response of the position and intensity of Hardley circulation to strong/weak EAWM. A strong EAWM is associated with an enhanced cross-equatorial flow crossing the maritime continent and a strengthened Australia summer monsoon westerlies which affect rainfall and temperature variations in northern and eastern part of the Australian continent. Furthermore, partial correlation analysis, which largely excludes El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) effects, suggests that these connections are the inherent features in the monsoon system. This is further supported by analyzing a global model experiment using persistent sea surface temperatures (SSTs) which, without any SST interannual variations, shows similar patterns as in the observational analysis. Furthermore, such interaction could potentially affect climate predictability in the region, as shown by some statistically significant lag correlations at monthly time scale. Such results are attributed to the impacts of EAWM on regional SST variations and its linkage to surface conditions in the Eurasian continent. Finally, such impacts under global warmed climate are discussed by analyzing ten IPCC AR4 models and results suggest they still exist in the warmed climate even though the EAWM tends to be weaker.     

Multi-timescale variation of East Asian winter monsoon intensity and its relation with sea surface temperature during last millennium based on ECHO-G simulation

Based on the simulation results derived from ECHO-G global coupled climate model, several East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM) indices are compared in order to choose the most suitable one for signaling the intensity of winter monsoon in the last millennium. The index I_shi, which is defined with normalized sea level pressure difference between sea and land in mid and low latitudes, is selected to describe the winter monsoon intensity variation owing to its better capability for reflecting the variation of winter monsoon subsystems, such as the continental high pressure, Aleutian low, East Asian major trough, westerly jet stream, and surface air temperature than the other indices examined. Wavelet analysis on index I_shi shows that the EAWM intensity is characterized by multi-timescale variation with inter-annual, decadal, inter-decadal and inter-centennial oscillations on the background of a slight descending trend. Correlation analysis between the EAWM index and sea surface temperature (SST) at various timescales reveals that the SST in mid-latitudes might provide the background of the EAWM strength changes above decadal timescales, and a negative-feedback process lasting for about two years is found between the EAWM intensity and the SST in the eastern equatorial Pacific. According to the correlation, the El Nino occurrence in the second-half of the year leads to weaker EAWM than normal in the following winter and the weakened EAWM corresponds to lower SST in eastern equatorial Pacific after about half a year, which will then strengthen the EAWM intensity in the next winter. It is a stable feedback process and its mechanism is discussed.     

一个适用于描述中国大陆冬季气温变化的东亚冬季风指数

利用1951年1月-2007年2月的NCEP V1格点资料和中国台站观测资料,定义了一个冬季风环流指数(IEAWM),并分析其与中国冬季气温和东亚大气环流变化的联系.结果表明该指数能够很好地反映东亚冬季风系统各成员的变化,兼顾北方和南方的环流状况和东西部热力差异的影响,改进了原有冬季风指数大多针对单一的冬季风环流成员及对中国冬季气温变化反映能力的不足,能够很好地反映中国冬季平均气温的异常变化.分析表明,当该指数为正值时东亚冬季风偏强,对应着地面西伯利亚高压和高空东亚大槽均偏强,东亚地区对流层中层的高-低纬度之间的纬向风经向切变加强,有利于中高纬度冷空气向南侵入,导致中国大陆地区气温偏低,反之亦然.IEAWM的年代际变化表明东亚冬季风在1985年之前偏强,1985年之后明显偏弱,这与1985年之后中国冬季变暖是一致的.     

Predictability of the East Asian winter monsoon interannual variability as indicated by the DEMETER CGCMS

The interannual variability of East Asian winter monsoon(EAWM) circulation from the Development of a European Multi-Model Ensemble(MME) System for Seasonal to Inter-Annual Prediction(DEMETER) hindcasts was evaluated against observation reanalysis data.We evaluated the DEMETER coupled general circulation models(CGCMs)’ retrospective prediction of the typical EAWM and its associated atmospheric circulation.Results show that the EAWM can be reasonably predicted with statistically significant accuracy,yet the major bias of the hindcast models is the underestimation of the related anomalies.The temporal correlation coefficient(TCC) of the MME-produced EAWM index,defined as the first EOF mode of 850hPa air temperature within the EAWM domain(20-60 N,90-150 E),was 0.595.This coefficient was higher than those of the corresponding individual models(range:0.39-0.51) for the period 1969-2001;this result indicates the advantage of the super-ensemble approach.This study also showed that the ensemble models can reasonably reproduce the major modes and their interannual variabilities for sea level pressure,geopotential height,surface air temperature,and wind fields in Eurasia.Therefore,the prediction of EAWM interannual variability is feasible using multimodel ensemble systems and that they may also reveal the associated mechanisms of the EAWM interannual variability.     

A preliminary attempt on decadal prediction of the East Asian summer monsoon

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - The East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) is one of the major synoptic systems that affect the summer climate in China. Decadal prediction of the EASM is of great...     

Propagating decadal sea surface temperature signal identified in modern proxy records of the tropical Pacific

Analysis of 86 years of multiple modern coral δ¹⁸O records in the tropical Pacific reveals a basin-scale decadal pattern of variability. Although coral δ¹⁸O records the effects of both temperature and seawater δ¹⁸O variability due to salinity effects, in practice, most of the records used here agree well with observations of sea surface temperature on longer timescales. These coral proxy records reveal strong variability near a 12-year period. Their relative phasing suggests a signal propagating from the southwestern subtropical Pacific to other regions. The results are consistent with recent studies based on instrumental data and with coupled climate model studies, in which advection of thermal anomalies leads to El Niño/Southern Oscillation-like variability on decadal timescales. Additionally, there is evidence for a significant shift in many of the time series, along with a decrease in the decadal variability, occurring in the early 1940s. Finally, the proxy records indicate the presence of strong teleconnections between the eastern tropical Pacific and high latitude climate.