Quantifying contributions of climate feedbacks to tropospheric warming in the NCAR CCSM3.0

In this study, a coupled atmosphere-surface “climate feedback-response analysis method” (CFRAM) was applied to the slab ocean model version of the NCAR CCSM3.0 to understand the tropospheric warming due to a doubling of CO₂ concentration through quantifying the contributions of each climate feedback process. It is shown that the tropospheric warming displays distinct meridional and vertical patterns that are in a good agreement with the multi-model mean projection from the IPCC AR4. In the tropics, the warming in the upper troposphere is stronger than in the lower troposphere, leading to a decrease in temperature lapse rate, whereas in high latitudes the opposite it true. In terms of meridional contrast, the lower tropospheric warming in the tropics is weaker than that in high latitudes, resulting in a weakened meridional temperature gradient. In the upper troposphere the meridional temperature gradient is enhanced due to much stronger warming in the tropics than in high latitudes. Using the CFRAM method, we analyzed both radiative feedbacks, which have been emphasized in previous climate feedback analysis, and non-radiative feedbacks. It is shown that non-radiative (radiative) feedbacks are the major contributors to the temperature lapse rate decrease (increase) in the tropical (polar) region. Atmospheric convection is the leading contributor to temperature lapse rate decrease in the tropics. The cloud feedback also has non-negligible contributions. In the polar region, water vapor feedback is the main contributor to the temperature lapse rate increase, followed by albedo feedback and CO₂ forcing. The decrease of meridional temperature gradient in the lower troposphere is mainly due to strong cooling from convection and cloud feedback in the tropics and the strong warming from albedo feedback in the polar region. The strengthening of meridional temperature gradient in the upper troposphere can be attributed to the warming associated with convection and cloud feedback in the tropics. Since convection is the leading contributor to the warming differences between tropical lower and upper troposphere, and between the tropical and polar regions, this study indicates that tropical convection plays a critical role in determining the climate sensitivity. In addition, the CFRAM analysis shows that convective process and water vapor feedback are the two major contributors to the tropical upper troposphere temperature change, indicating that the excessive upper tropospheric warming in the IPCC AR4 models may be due to overestimated warming from convective process or underestimated cooling due to water vapor feedback.     

Critical mechanisms for the formation of extreme arctic sea-ice extent in the summers of 2007 and 1996

Along with significant changes in the Arctic climate system, the largest year-to-year variation in sea-ice extent (SIE) has occurred in the Laptev, East Siberian, and Chukchi seas (defined here as the area of focus, AOF), among which the two highly contrasting extreme events were observed in the summers of 2007 and 1996 during the period 1979–2012. Although most efforts have been devoted to understanding the 2007 low, a contrasting high September SIE in 1996 might share some related but opposing forcing mechanisms. In this study, we investigate the mechanisms for the formation of these two extremes and quantitatively estimate the cloud-radiation-water vapor feedback to the sea-ice-concentration (SIC) variation utilizing satellite-observed sea-ice products and the NASA MERRA reanalysis. The low SIE in 2007 was associated with a persistent anticyclone over the Beaufort Sea coupled with low pressure over Eurasia, which induced anomalous southerly winds. Ample warm and moist air from the North Pacific was transported to the AOF and resulted in positive anomalies of cloud fraction (CF), precipitable water vapor (PWV), surface LWnet (down-up), total surface energy and temperature. In contrast, the high SIE event in 1996 was associated with a persistent low pressure over the central Arctic coupled with high pressure along the Eastern Arctic coasts, which generated anomalous northerly winds and resulted in negative anomalies of above mentioned atmospheric parameters. In addition to their immediate impacts on sea ice reduction, CF, PWV and radiation can interplay to lead to a positive feedback loop among them, which plays a critical role in reinforcing sea ice to a great low value in 2007. During the summer of 2007, the minimum SIC is 31 % below the climatic mean, while the maximum CF, LWnet and PWV can be up to 15 %, 20 Wm^?2, and 4 kg m^?3 above. The high anti-correlations (?0.79, ?0.61, ?0.61) between the SIC and CF, PWV, and LWnet indicate that CF, PWV and LW radiation are indeed having significant impacts on the SIC variation. A new record low occurred in the summer of 2012 was mainly triggered by a super storm over the central Arctic Ocean in early August that caused substantial mechanical ice deformation on top of the long-term thinning of an Arctic ice pack that had become more dominated by seasonal ice.     

The North Atlantic oscillation simulated by versions 2 and 4 of IAP/ LASG GOALS Model

The capabilities of two versions of the Global-Ocean-Atmosphere-Land-System model (i.e. GOALS-2 and GOALS-4) developed at State Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (LASG), are validated in terms of the simulations of the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), which is currently the subject of considerable scientific interest. The results show that both GOALS-2 and GOALS-4 exhibit a realistic NAO signal associated with relatively reasonable spatial pat-terns of sea level pressure, surface air temperature, and precipitation. Generally speaking, the associated pat-terns of precipitation in GOALSs match better with the observation in comparison with the case of surface temperature. For the imprint of NAO on the ocean, or perhaps a coupling between the two fluids, the asso-ciated tripole patterns of the North Atlantic SST anomaly are presented distinctly in GOALS-2, for GOALS-4 however, this is not the case. Spatially, the models’ main deficiencies appear to be that the simu-lated Icelandic lows shift northward apparently, which in turn result in the blemish of GOALSs in repro-ducing the accompanied surface wind anomalies. For the interannual and even longer time scale variations of DJF sea level pressure (SLP) over the North Atlantic region. GOALSs reproduce the center with the strongest variability rationally, but the intensities are far weaker than the observation.     

赤道东太平洋海表水温月异常的数值试验

本文利用中科院大气物理研究所的两层大气环流模式（ＩＡＰ－ＧＣＭ Ⅱ）作了冬季赤道东太平洋地区海表水温月异常增暖时对大气环流及我国气候影 响的数值试验。结果表明,该处海表水温的异常增暖能引起中太平洋信风带Ｗａｌｋｅｒ 环流的改变并激发出中高纬度３０－５０天的低频振荡;当该异常结束后,其后效仍 会对我国的气候产生影响。     

北方地区气温偏低全国大部降水偏多--2001年1月--

1月份,由于冷空气活动频繁,我国多次出现大风降温天气,东部大部地区气温较常年同期偏低.由于暖湿气流活跃,国内出现6次降水过程,大部地区降水偏多.     

A further study on an extended nonlinear ocean—atmosphere coupled hydrodynamic characteristic system and the abrupt feature of ENSO events

In this paper, the decade data of meteorological satellite and surface meteorological observation of China have been analysed. The relationship between cloud and radiation has been studied. A set of empirical formulae of the ralationships between the albedo and cloud amount, the outgoing longwave radiation and cloud amount in Chinese different districts and different seasons has been deduced. They express simply the response of both planet reflectivity and earth-atmosphere outgoing longwave radiation to the change of cloud amount. So that the sensitivity of net radiation of the earth-atmosphere system to the change of cloud amount and the ratio of cloud reflective effect to greenhouse effect can be estimated. In this paper, the radiative process of the earth-atmosphere system, cloud and radiative balance and its effect on climate have been synthetically studied. ¹The project is supported by National Natural Sciences Fundation of China (NNSFC).     

Study on clouds and marine atmospheric boundary layer

A set of remote sensing instruments of Peking University, which includes mainly a dual~channel(22.235GHz and 35.5GHz) microwave radiometer, a 8mm microwave and a 5mm microwave radiometer, has been developed for the Western North-Pacific Cloud-Radiation Experiment (WENPEX). The instruments were used to observe the cloud and marine atmospheric boundary-layer in the southwest sea area of Japan in winter time from 1989 to 1991. In the weather change process, the characteristics of the marine atmospheric boundary-layer and liquid water content in cloud of this area in winter time are studied from observation data. A one-dimensional mixed layer model is presented for the growth and evolution of a cloud-topped marine boundary-layer. The model is used to study in the WENPEX. The simulation results are in agreement with observation data, especially the integral water in cloud.     

THE CHARACTERS OF ENERGY BUDGET ON THE GOBI AND DESERT SURFACE IN HEXI REGION*

In the paper,the characters of surface energy budget on Huayin(Gobi)and the desert surface during the period from 26 June to 31 August 1990 in the HEIFE have been analyzed,then have been compared with the observed results during 4-19 September 1988 in the Pilot Observation Period of the HEIFE.The results show that the atmosphere is in superadiabatic unstable state and there is a phenomenon of inverse humidity to form negative water vapour flux.The sensible heat flux on the surface energy budget is in majority,but the latent heat flux may be neglected over the Gobi and desert surface in the cloudless daytime in the summer.     

参考作物蒸散量的多种计算方法及其结果的比较

分别用 FAO Penman- Monteith公式 (模型 1 )、FAO Penman 修正式 (模型 2 )和国内Penman修正式 (模型 3)计算了泰安和西峰两地的参考作物蒸散量 ,对 3种方法的计算结果进行了比较 .模型 1得到的参考作物蒸散量大于后 2种模型 ,导致不同模型计算偏差的原因是 3种模型各自选用了不同的辐射项和动力项计算式 ,且计算偏差随季节和地理条件而变 .建议计算区域参考作物蒸散量用模型 1 ,计算单站逐日参考作物蒸散量 3种模型都可用 .     

东亚大气环流的低频振荡及与韵律的关系

本文根据北半球500hPa高度场30年(1951—1980)平均的逐候格点资料,对气候平均的东亚各主要大气环流系统的年内变化进行了谐波分析和天气学分析.结果表明,东亚大气环流系统存在着三种主要的大气低频波:年波、半年波和30—50天的季内波;中、高纬度的大气环流以年波振荡为主,低纬度的大气环流以半年波振荡为主;30—50天的季内波是北半球各纬度上都存在的一种波,但它对总方差的贡献在低纬比中、高纬度大.此外,还讨论了年波和半年波这两种大气低频波与我国长期预报中常用的各种韵律指标特别是隔季相关现象的关系.