Abstract

El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events are accompanied by an anomalous zonal sea surface temperature (SST) gradient over the west Pacific Ocean, defined here as the west Pacific SST gradient (WPG). The WPG is defined as the standardized difference between area-averaged SST over the central Pacific Ocean (Niño-4 region) and west Pacific Ocean (0°–10°N, 130°–150°E). While the direction of the WPG follows ENSO cycles, the magnitude of the gradient varies considerably between individual El Niño and La Niña events. In this study, El Niño and La Niña events are grouped according to the magnitude of the WPG, and tropical SST, circulations, and precipitation are examined for the period 1948–2011. Until the 1980s the WPG showed little trend as the west and central Pacific warmed at similar rates; however, the west Pacific has recently warmed faster than the central Pacific, which has resulted in an increased WPG during La Niña events.

The temporal evolution and distribution of tropical Pacific SST as well as the near-surface tropical Pacific zonal wind, divergence, and vertical velocity are considerably different during ENSO events partitioned according to the strength of the WPG. Modifications to the tropical circulation, resulting in changes to Indo– west Pacific precipitation, are linked to strong and consistent circulation and precipitation modifications throughout the Northern Hemisphere during winter.

Abstract

We present an offline paleo-data assimilation methodology that formally combines the analog assimilation method (AA) and the Kalman filter (KF), utilizing the KF as a postprocessor of the AA output. This methodology can be applied to reconstruct climate fields that are spatially separated from proxy-based reconstructions by using the spatial covariability generated by a climate model. Our method is applied to a set of spatially resolved and spatially consistent climate reconstructions of several variables reflecting different seasons, incorporating the application of methodological variants that have undergone rigorous testing in terms of both improving statistical methodology and physical interpretation. This contrasts with applications primarily based on transfer relationships of annual means of local, single variable or bivariate, climate model priors into paleo proxy states. The gains from adding the KF postprocessor are modest in our test case of reconstructing sea level pressure (SLP) geopotential height fields in the northeast Pacific, utilizing paleoclimatic temperature and moisture reconstructions in western North America. Notably, SLP reconstruction skill is enhanced in the oceanic region south of Alaska that is strongly associated with wet winters in western North America. The results suggest that the AA method is approaching optimality in this test case, driven by the quality of the paleoreconstruction information used to drive the AA process, along with the realism of the climate model employed, to which the KF postprocessing step is added. The derived reconstructions are then used for evaluation of the relationship between winter SLP and precipitation in California over the past ∼450 years.

Abstract

The regional influence of the Indian monsoon onset is examined though observational analysis focusing on the Rodwell–Hoskins “monsoon-desert” hypothesis, which proposes that the strong diabatic heating associated with the monsoon produces a Gill-like Rossby wave response that thermodynamically interacts with the midlatitude westerly jet to produce subsidence and reduced rainfall to the west of the monsoon. Here, the authors analyze this proposed mechanism in terms of changes to the thermodynamic energy equation, regional circulation, and precipitation between the 10-day periods before and after the monsoon onset, for all onset dates in the 1958–2000 period. A Rossby-like response to the monsoon onset is clear in the observational data and is associated with horizontal temperature advection at midlevels as the westerlies intersect the warm temperature anomalies of the Rossby wave. Analysis of the thermodynamic equation verifies that the horizontal temperature advection is indeed balanced by subsidence over areas of North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East, and there is an associated decrease in precipitation over those regions. Despite the increased subsidence, diabatic heating changes are small in these regions so diabatic enhancement does not appear to be a primary factor in the response to the onset. This analysis also shows that the same processes that favor subsidence to the west of the monsoon also force rising motion over northern India and appear to be an important factor for the inland development of the monsoon. Comparison of strong and weak onsets further validates these relationships.

Abstract

Southwestern Asia, defined here as the domain bounded by 20°–40°N and 40°–70°E, which includes the nations of Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, is a water-stressed and semiarid region that receives roughly 75% of its annual rainfall during November–April. The November–April climate of southwestern Asia is strongly influenced by tropical Indo-Pacific variability on intraseasonal and interannual time scales, much of which can be attributed to sea surface temperature (SST) variations. The influences of lower-frequency SST variability on southwestern Asia climate during November–April Pacific decadal SST (PDSST) variability and the long-term trend in SST (LTSST) is examined. The U.S. Climate Variability and Predictability Program (CLIVAR) Drought Working Group forced global atmospheric climate models with PDSST and LTSST patterns, identified using empirical orthogonal functions, to show the steady atmospheric response to these modes of decadal to multidecadal SST variability. During November–April, LTSST forces an anticyclone over southwestern Asia, which results in reduced precipitation and increases in surface temperature. The precipitation and tropospheric circulation influences of LTSST are corroborated by independent observed precipitation and circulation datasets during 1901–2004. The decadal variations of southwestern Asia precipitation may be forced by PDSST variability, with two of the three models indicating that the cold phase of PDSST forces an anticyclone and precipitation reductions. However, there are intermodel circulation variations to PDSST that influence subregional precipitation patterns over the Middle East, southwestern Asia, and subtropical Asia. Changes in wintertime temperature and precipitation over southwestern Asia forced by LTSST and PDSST imply important changes to the land surface hydrology during the spring and summer.

Abstract

The spatial and temporal evolution of Middle East and southwest Asia (MESW) precipitation characteristics and the associated atmospheric circulation during times in which tropical eastern Indian Ocean precipitation is either enhanced or reduced associated with the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) is assessed. Using multiple estimates of both the observed precipitation and the MJO during 1981–2016, the evolution of MESW precipitation characteristics throughout November–April is examined in terms of monthly precipitation accumulation on precipitation days, the number of precipitation days, and the number of extreme precipitation days. MJO phases 2–4, during which eastern Indian Ocean precipitation is enhanced, and MJO phases 6–8, during which eastern Indian Ocean precipitation is reduced, are related, with significant decreases and increases in the number of precipitation days across MESW, respectively. The patterns of precipitation-day changes between MJO phases undergo noteworthy spatial and temporal evolutions across the boreal cold season that are influenced by the interaction between Rossby wave forcing by the MJO and seasonal changes in both the upper-level jet and moisture over the region. During December–January, the changes in precipitation days are found primarily over northern MESW, while during February–March, the changes in precipitation days are found primarily over southern MESW. Although the results identify an important sensitivity in the number of precipitation days over the MESW related to the MJO, the same sensitivity is not apparent in terms of the number of extreme precipitation days and, in particular, the amount of precipitation on a precipitation day.

Abstract

The ability of six CMIP6 models to reproduce the observed cold season teleconnection between tropical Indo-Pacific sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and precipitation in Southwest Asia, the coastal Middle East (CME), and northern Pakistan and India (NPI) is examined. The 1979–2014 period is analyzed to maximize observations over both the tropical ocean and the regions. Nine historical simulations for the same period are examined for each model to account for the internal variability of the coupled system. The teleconnection is examined in terms of SSTs, precipitation, 200-hPa geopotential heights, and derived quantities. All the models capture some of the broadest features of the teleconnections, but there is a wide range in the ability of the models to reproduce the magnitude and details. The differences appear related to both the models’ ability to capture the details of the tropical variability, including the position and strength of the precipitation anomalies in the Indo-west Pacific, and the models’ ability to accurately propagate the tropically forced response into the region. The teleconnections to the CME and NPI regions on the eastern and western margins, respectively, of the strongest signal are very similar in structure and have similar results, except that the models’ ability to reproduce the strength and details of the teleconnection is even more limited, consistent with their marginal locations and known influence of other modes of variability. For all three areas, the wide range in model ability to capture the leading teleconnection suggests caution in interpreting climate regional projections.

Abstract

The leading pattern of precipitation for the Indian Ocean, one of the most intense areas of rainfall on the globe, is calculated for November–April 1979–2008. The associated regional circulation and thermodynamic forcing of precipitation over Asia are examined at both intraseasonal and interannual time scales. The leading pattern is determined using both empirical orthogonal function analysis of monthly precipitation data and a closely related index of daily outgoing longwave radiation filtered into intraseasonal (33–105 days) and interannual (greater than 105 days) components.

The leading pattern has a maximum in the tropical eastern Indian Ocean, and is closely associated with the Madden–Julian oscillation at intraseasonal time scales and related to the El Niño–Southern Oscillation at interannual time scales. Both time scales are associated with baroclinic Gill–Matsuno-like circulation responses extending over southern Asia, but the interannual component also has a strong equivalent barotropic circulation. Thermodynamically, both time scales are associated with cold temperature advection and subsidence over southwest Asia, with advection of the mean temperature by the anomalous wind more important at lower and midlevels and advection of the anomalous temperature by the mean wind more important at upper levels.

For individual months, the intraseasonal variability can overwhelm the interannual variability. Enhanced Indian Ocean convection persisted for almost the entire 2007/08 season in association with severe drought over southwest Asia, but a strong intraseasonal signal in January 2008 reversed the pattern, resulting in damaging floods in the midst of drought.

Abstract

Deep tropical convection over the Indian Ocean leads to intense diabatic heating, a main driver of the climate system. The Northern Hemisphere circulation and precipitation associated with intraseasonal and seasonal-to-interannual components of the leading pattern of Indian Ocean convection are investigated for November–April 1979–2008. The leading pattern of Indian Ocean convection is separated into intraseasonal and seasonal-to-interannual components by filtering an index of outgoing longwave radiation at 33–105 days and greater than 105 days, yielding Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO)- and El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO)-influenced patterns, respectively. Observations and barotropic Rossby wave ray tracing experiments suggest that Indian Ocean convection can influence the ENSO-related hemispheric teleconnection pattern in addition to the regional Asian teleconnection. Equivalent barotropic circulation anomalies throughout the Northern Hemisphere subtropics are associated with both seasonal-to-interannual Indian Ocean convection and ENSO. The hemispheric teleconnection associated with seasonal-to-interannual Indian Ocean convection is investigated with ray tracing, which suggests that forcing over the Indian Ocean can propagate eastward across the hemisphere and back to Asia. The relationship between the seasonal-to-interannual component of Indian Ocean convection and ENSO is investigated in terms of a gradient in sea surface temperatures (SST) over the equatorial western Pacific Ocean. When the western Pacific SST gradient is strong during ENSO, strong Maritime Continent precipitation extends further westward into the Indian Ocean, which is accompanied by enhanced tropospheric Asian circulation, similar to the seasonal-to-interannual component of Indian Ocean convection. Analysis of the three strongest interannual convection seasons shows that the strong Indian Ocean pattern of ENSO can dominate individual seasons.

Abstract

SSTs in the western Pacific Ocean have tracked closely with CMIP5 simulations despite recent hiatus cooling in the eastern Pacific. This paper quantifies these similarities and associated circulation and precipitation variations using the first global 1900–2012 ENSO-residual empirical orthogonal functions (EOFs) of 35 variables: observed SSTs; 28 CMIP5 SST simulations; Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) 25-, 70-, and 171-m ocean temperatures and sea surface heights (SSHs); and Twentieth Century Reanalysis, version 2 (20CRv2), surface winds and precipitation.

While estimated independently, these leading EOFs across all variables fit together in a meaningful way, and the authors refer to them jointly as the west Pacific warming mode (WPWM). WPWM SST EOFs correspond closely in space and time. Their spatial patterns form a “western V” extending from the Maritime Continent into the extratropical Pacific. Their temporal principal components (PCs) have increased rapidly since 1990; this increase has been primarily due to radiative forcing and not natural decadal variability.

WPWM circulation changes appear consistent with a Matsuno–Gill-like atmospheric response associated with an ocean–atmosphere dipole structure contrasting increased (decreased) western (eastern) Pacific precipitation, SSHs, and ocean temperatures. These changes have enhanced the Walker circulation and modulated weather on a global scale. An AGCM experiment and the WPWM of global boreal spring precipitation indicate significant drying across parts of East Africa, the Middle East, the southwestern United States, southern South America, and Asia. Changes in the WPWM have tracked closely with precipitation and the increase in drought frequency over the semiarid and water-insecure areas of East Africa, the Middle East, and southwest Asia.