Editorial Type:
Article
Article Type:
Research Article

Modulation of the Tibetan Plateau Snow Cover on the ENSO Teleconnections: From the East Asian Summer Monsoon Perspective

Zhiwei Wu Key Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, and State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

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Jianping Li State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

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Zhihong Jiang Key Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, China

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Tingting Ma Key Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, China

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Print Publication:
01 Apr 2012
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-11-00135.1
Page(s):
2481–2489
Restricted access

Abstract

The East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) may exhibit rather large variability between years characterized by the same ENSO phase. Such inconsistency reduces the EASM predictability based on ENSO. Results in this study show that the Tibetan Plateau snow cover (TPSC) exerts a modulating effect on ENSO teleconnections and ENSO significantly correlates with the EASM only during the reduced TPSC summers. Three-dimensional circulation structures are examined to manifest that the typical ENSO signals in reduced TPSC summers tend to be stronger than in excessive TPSC summers. Numerical and theoretical evidences indicate that the anomalously reduced TPSC can force positive geopotential height anomalies at the upper troposphere and weaken the jet streams across eastern Asia and northwestern Pacific. Governed by such basic state zonal flows, the extratropical Rossby wave response to the ENSO forcing usually has a larger amplitude and pronounced westward development. In such case, ENSO extends its influences to eastern Asia and enhances its connection with the EASM.

Corresponding author address: Dr. Zhiwei Wu, Key Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, 219 Ningliu Rd., Nanjing 210044, China. E-mail: zhiweiwu@hawaii.edu

Abstract

The East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) may exhibit rather large variability between years characterized by the same ENSO phase. Such inconsistency reduces the EASM predictability based on ENSO. Results in this study show that the Tibetan Plateau snow cover (TPSC) exerts a modulating effect on ENSO teleconnections and ENSO significantly correlates with the EASM only during the reduced TPSC summers. Three-dimensional circulation structures are examined to manifest that the typical ENSO signals in reduced TPSC summers tend to be stronger than in excessive TPSC summers. Numerical and theoretical evidences indicate that the anomalously reduced TPSC can force positive geopotential height anomalies at the upper troposphere and weaken the jet streams across eastern Asia and northwestern Pacific. Governed by such basic state zonal flows, the extratropical Rossby wave response to the ENSO forcing usually has a larger amplitude and pronounced westward development. In such case, ENSO extends its influences to eastern Asia and enhances its connection with the EASM.

Corresponding author address: Dr. Zhiwei Wu, Key Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, 219 Ningliu Rd., Nanjing 210044, China. E-mail: zhiweiwu@hawaii.edu
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