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- Author or Editor: C. R. Mechoso x
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Abstract
The impact of South American orography on subtropical stratocumulus clouds off the Peruvian coast is investigated in the context of an atmospheric general circulation model. It is found that stratocumulus incidence is significantly reduced when South American orography is removed. Key to this behavior is a decrease in lower tropospheric stability (LTS) that allows for more frequent stratocumulus destruction through the model’s cloud-top entrainment instability mechanism. The role of orography in enhancing Peruvian stratocumulus is as follows. Within the PBL, orography deflects the midlatitude westerly winds equatorward in association with cold air advection and blocking of the low-level flow from the continent. Above the PBL, the steep and high South American orography deflects a significant portion of the midlatitude westerlies equatorward. This flow sinks along the equatorward sloping isentropes, thus promoting subsidence. Both processes increase LTS over the stratocumulus region. In further AGCM experiments, the sensitivity of Peruvian stratocumulus to the use of unsmoothed orographic boundary conditions is assessed. The results show no significant differences to the control simulation, which uses smoothed orography. This suggests that, in the context of GCMs, a representation of South American orography more detailed than is generally used has little potential for improving the performance of coupled ocean–atmosphere models in the eastern tropical Pacific.
Abstract
The impact of South American orography on subtropical stratocumulus clouds off the Peruvian coast is investigated in the context of an atmospheric general circulation model. It is found that stratocumulus incidence is significantly reduced when South American orography is removed. Key to this behavior is a decrease in lower tropospheric stability (LTS) that allows for more frequent stratocumulus destruction through the model’s cloud-top entrainment instability mechanism. The role of orography in enhancing Peruvian stratocumulus is as follows. Within the PBL, orography deflects the midlatitude westerly winds equatorward in association with cold air advection and blocking of the low-level flow from the continent. Above the PBL, the steep and high South American orography deflects a significant portion of the midlatitude westerlies equatorward. This flow sinks along the equatorward sloping isentropes, thus promoting subsidence. Both processes increase LTS over the stratocumulus region. In further AGCM experiments, the sensitivity of Peruvian stratocumulus to the use of unsmoothed orographic boundary conditions is assessed. The results show no significant differences to the control simulation, which uses smoothed orography. This suggests that, in the context of GCMs, a representation of South American orography more detailed than is generally used has little potential for improving the performance of coupled ocean–atmosphere models in the eastern tropical Pacific.
Abstract
A contemporary radiation parameterization scheme has been implemented in the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), atmospheric GCM (AGCM). This scheme is a combination of the delta-four-stream method for solar flux transfer and the delta-two-and-four-stream method for thermal infrared flux transfer. Both methods have been demonstrated to be computationally efficient and at the same time highly accurate in comparison with exact radiative transfer computations. The correlated-k distribution method for radiative transfer has been used to represent gaseous absorption in multiple-scattering atmospheres. The single-scattering properties for ice and water clouds are parameterized in terms of ice/liquid water content and mean effective size/radius. In conjunction with the preceding radiative scheme, parameterizations for fractional cloud cover and cloud vertical overlap have also been devised in the model in which the cloud amount is determined from the total cloud water mixing ratio. For radiation calculation purposes, the model clouds are vertically grouped in terms of low, middle, and high types. Maximum overlap is first used for each cloud type, followed by random overlap among the three cloud types. The preceding radiation and cloud parameterizations are incorporated into the UCLA AGCM, and it is shown that the simulated cloud cover and outgoing longwave radiation fields without any special tuning are comparable with those of International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) dataset and derived from radiation budget experiments. The use of the new radiation and cloud schemes enhances the radiative warming in the mid- to upper tropical troposphere and alleviates the cold bias that is common to many AGCMs. Sensitivity studies show that ice crystal size and cloud inhomogeneity significantly affect the radiation budget at the top of the atmosphere and the earth’s surface.
Abstract
A contemporary radiation parameterization scheme has been implemented in the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), atmospheric GCM (AGCM). This scheme is a combination of the delta-four-stream method for solar flux transfer and the delta-two-and-four-stream method for thermal infrared flux transfer. Both methods have been demonstrated to be computationally efficient and at the same time highly accurate in comparison with exact radiative transfer computations. The correlated-k distribution method for radiative transfer has been used to represent gaseous absorption in multiple-scattering atmospheres. The single-scattering properties for ice and water clouds are parameterized in terms of ice/liquid water content and mean effective size/radius. In conjunction with the preceding radiative scheme, parameterizations for fractional cloud cover and cloud vertical overlap have also been devised in the model in which the cloud amount is determined from the total cloud water mixing ratio. For radiation calculation purposes, the model clouds are vertically grouped in terms of low, middle, and high types. Maximum overlap is first used for each cloud type, followed by random overlap among the three cloud types. The preceding radiation and cloud parameterizations are incorporated into the UCLA AGCM, and it is shown that the simulated cloud cover and outgoing longwave radiation fields without any special tuning are comparable with those of International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) dataset and derived from radiation budget experiments. The use of the new radiation and cloud schemes enhances the radiative warming in the mid- to upper tropical troposphere and alleviates the cold bias that is common to many AGCMs. Sensitivity studies show that ice crystal size and cloud inhomogeneity significantly affect the radiation budget at the top of the atmosphere and the earth’s surface.
Abstract
A detailed analysis is presented of the behavior of the zonal wavenumber 2 component of the flow (wave 2) for July through October in the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere. Wave 2 in the stratosphere is characterized by a broad meridional structure peaking between 55° and 65°S, and regular eastward propagation, with periods ranging from 5 to 40 days. Maximum geopotential height amplitudes for a year range from approximately 600 to 1000 m. Examination of vertical structure suggests that during episodes of largest growth, wave 2 propagates upward from the upper troposphere. Regular eastward propagation is, however, evident only within the stratosphere. There are also episodes of wave 2 growth that do not appear connected with the troposphere; in general, the wave 2 amplitude is not as large in these cases.
There are several years when wave 1 and wave 2 amplitudes are strongly anticorrelated in time during September and October. There are also years with strong positive correlation during August and September. While wave 1 is usually quasi-stationary, a number of instances where wave 1 moves eastward with wave 2 are observed, lasting from 4 to 10 days.
Calculations show that the zonal mean state of the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere frequently satisfies conditions for instability. It is suggested that instability of zonally symmetric and asymmetric states, and nonlinear interactions between wave 1 and wave 2 both play a role in determining the behavior of wave 2 in the Southern Hemisphere winter and spring stratosphere.
Abstract
A detailed analysis is presented of the behavior of the zonal wavenumber 2 component of the flow (wave 2) for July through October in the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere. Wave 2 in the stratosphere is characterized by a broad meridional structure peaking between 55° and 65°S, and regular eastward propagation, with periods ranging from 5 to 40 days. Maximum geopotential height amplitudes for a year range from approximately 600 to 1000 m. Examination of vertical structure suggests that during episodes of largest growth, wave 2 propagates upward from the upper troposphere. Regular eastward propagation is, however, evident only within the stratosphere. There are also episodes of wave 2 growth that do not appear connected with the troposphere; in general, the wave 2 amplitude is not as large in these cases.
There are several years when wave 1 and wave 2 amplitudes are strongly anticorrelated in time during September and October. There are also years with strong positive correlation during August and September. While wave 1 is usually quasi-stationary, a number of instances where wave 1 moves eastward with wave 2 are observed, lasting from 4 to 10 days.
Calculations show that the zonal mean state of the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere frequently satisfies conditions for instability. It is suggested that instability of zonally symmetric and asymmetric states, and nonlinear interactions between wave 1 and wave 2 both play a role in determining the behavior of wave 2 in the Southern Hemisphere winter and spring stratosphere.
Abstract
The evolution of the stratospheric flow during the major stratospheric sudden warming of February 1979 is studied using two primitive equation models of the stratosphere and mesosphere. The United Kingdom Meteorological Office Stratosphere-Mesosphere Model (SMM) uses log pressure as a vertical coordinate. A spectral, entropy coordinate version of the SMM (entropy coordinate model, or ECM) that has recently been developed is also used. Both models produce similar successful simulations through the peak of the warming, capturing the splitting of the vortex and the development of small-scale structures, such as narrow baroclinic zones. The ECM produces a more realistic recombination and recovery of the polar vortex in the midstratosphere after the warming, due mainly to better conservation properties for Rossby-Ertel potential vorticity in this model. Another advantage of the ECM is the automatic increase in vertical resolution near baroclinic zones. Comparison of SMM simulations with forecasts performed using the University of California, Los Angeles general circulation model confirms the previously noted sensitivity of stratospheric forecasts to tropospheric forecast and emphasizes the importance of adequate vertical resolution in modeling the stratosphere.
The ECM simulators provide a schematic description of the three-dimensional evolution of the polar vortex and the motion of air through it. During the warming, the two cyclonic vortices till westward and equatorward with height. Strong upward velocities develop in the lower stratosphere on the west (cold) side of a baroclinic zone as it forms over Europe and Asia. Strong downward velocities appear in the upper stratosphere on the east (warm) side, strengthening the temperature gradients. After the peak of the warming, vertical velocities decrease, downward velocities move into the lower stratosphere, and upward velocities move into the upper stratosphere. Transport calculations show that air with high ozone mixing ratios is advected toward the pole from low latitudes during the warming, and air with low ozone mixing ratios is transported to the midstratosphere from both higher and lower altitudes along the baroclinic zone in the polar regions. Trajectories of parcels moving around the vortex oscillate up and down as they move through regions of ascending and descending motions, with an overall increase in pressure in the polar regions. Tracer transport and trajectory calculations show enhanced diabatic descent in the region between cyclone and anticyclone during the warming, consistent with the temperature structure shown.
Abstract
The evolution of the stratospheric flow during the major stratospheric sudden warming of February 1979 is studied using two primitive equation models of the stratosphere and mesosphere. The United Kingdom Meteorological Office Stratosphere-Mesosphere Model (SMM) uses log pressure as a vertical coordinate. A spectral, entropy coordinate version of the SMM (entropy coordinate model, or ECM) that has recently been developed is also used. Both models produce similar successful simulations through the peak of the warming, capturing the splitting of the vortex and the development of small-scale structures, such as narrow baroclinic zones. The ECM produces a more realistic recombination and recovery of the polar vortex in the midstratosphere after the warming, due mainly to better conservation properties for Rossby-Ertel potential vorticity in this model. Another advantage of the ECM is the automatic increase in vertical resolution near baroclinic zones. Comparison of SMM simulations with forecasts performed using the University of California, Los Angeles general circulation model confirms the previously noted sensitivity of stratospheric forecasts to tropospheric forecast and emphasizes the importance of adequate vertical resolution in modeling the stratosphere.
The ECM simulators provide a schematic description of the three-dimensional evolution of the polar vortex and the motion of air through it. During the warming, the two cyclonic vortices till westward and equatorward with height. Strong upward velocities develop in the lower stratosphere on the west (cold) side of a baroclinic zone as it forms over Europe and Asia. Strong downward velocities appear in the upper stratosphere on the east (warm) side, strengthening the temperature gradients. After the peak of the warming, vertical velocities decrease, downward velocities move into the lower stratosphere, and upward velocities move into the upper stratosphere. Transport calculations show that air with high ozone mixing ratios is advected toward the pole from low latitudes during the warming, and air with low ozone mixing ratios is transported to the midstratosphere from both higher and lower altitudes along the baroclinic zone in the polar regions. Trajectories of parcels moving around the vortex oscillate up and down as they move through regions of ascending and descending motions, with an overall increase in pressure in the polar regions. Tracer transport and trajectory calculations show enhanced diabatic descent in the region between cyclone and anticyclone during the warming, consistent with the temperature structure shown.
Abstract
A multiyear simulation with a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model (GCM) is presented. The model consists of the UCLA global atmospheric GCM coupled to the GFDL oceanic GCM; the latter is dynamically active over the tropical Pacific, while climatological time-varying sea surface temperatures (SST) are prescribed elsewhere. The model successfully simulates the main climatological features associated with the seasonal cycle, including the east-west gradient in SST across the equatorial Pacific. The most apparent deficiencies include a systematic cold bias (∼2 K) across most of the tropical Pacific and underestimated wind stress magnitudes in the equatorial band. Multichannel singular spectrum analysis is used to describe the multivariate structure of the seasonal cycle at the equator in both the model and observed data. The annual harmonic in equatorial SST is primarily wind driven, while air-sea interaction strongly affects the semiannual harmonic.
Abstract
A multiyear simulation with a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model (GCM) is presented. The model consists of the UCLA global atmospheric GCM coupled to the GFDL oceanic GCM; the latter is dynamically active over the tropical Pacific, while climatological time-varying sea surface temperatures (SST) are prescribed elsewhere. The model successfully simulates the main climatological features associated with the seasonal cycle, including the east-west gradient in SST across the equatorial Pacific. The most apparent deficiencies include a systematic cold bias (∼2 K) across most of the tropical Pacific and underestimated wind stress magnitudes in the equatorial band. Multichannel singular spectrum analysis is used to describe the multivariate structure of the seasonal cycle at the equator in both the model and observed data. The annual harmonic in equatorial SST is primarily wind driven, while air-sea interaction strongly affects the semiannual harmonic.
Abstract
Two multiyear simulations with a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model (GCM)-totaling 45 years-are used to investigate interannual variability at the equator. The model consists of the UCLA global atmospheric GCM coupled to the GFDL oceanic GCM, dynamically active over the tropical Pacific. Multichannel singular spectrum analysis along the equator identifies ENSO-like quasi-biennial (QB) and quasi-quadrennial (QQ) modes. Both consist of predominantly standing oscillations in sea surface temperature and zonal wind stress that peak in the central or east Pacific, accompanied by an oscillation in equatorial thermocline depth that is characterized by a phase shift of about 90° across the basin, with west leading east. Simulated interannual variability is weaker than observed in both simulations. One of these is dominated by the QB, the other by the QQ mode, although the two differ only in details of the surface-layer parameterizations.
Abstract
Two multiyear simulations with a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model (GCM)-totaling 45 years-are used to investigate interannual variability at the equator. The model consists of the UCLA global atmospheric GCM coupled to the GFDL oceanic GCM, dynamically active over the tropical Pacific. Multichannel singular spectrum analysis along the equator identifies ENSO-like quasi-biennial (QB) and quasi-quadrennial (QQ) modes. Both consist of predominantly standing oscillations in sea surface temperature and zonal wind stress that peak in the central or east Pacific, accompanied by an oscillation in equatorial thermocline depth that is characterized by a phase shift of about 90° across the basin, with west leading east. Simulated interannual variability is weaker than observed in both simulations. One of these is dominated by the QB, the other by the QQ mode, although the two differ only in details of the surface-layer parameterizations.
Abstract
Spectral analyses of time series of zonal winds derived from locations of balloons drifting in the Southern Hemisphere polar vortex during the Vorcore campaign of the Stratéole program reveal a peak with a frequency near 0.10 h−1, more than 25% higher than the inertial frequency at locations along the trajectories. Using balloon data and values of relative vorticity evaluated from the Modern Era Retrospective-Analyses for Research and Applications (MERRA), the authors find that the spectral peak near 0.10 h−1 can be interpreted as being due to inertial waves propagating inside the Antarctic polar vortex. In support of this claim, the authors examine the way in which the low-frequency part of the gravity wave spectrum sampled by the balloons is shifted because of effects of the background flow vorticity. Locally, the background flow can be expressed as the sum of solid-body rotation and shear. This study demonstrates that while pure solid-body rotation gives an effective inertial frequency equal to the absolute vorticity, the latter gives an effective inertial frequency that varies, depending on the direction of wave propagation, between limits defined by the absolute vorticity plus or minus half of the background relative vorticity.
Abstract
Spectral analyses of time series of zonal winds derived from locations of balloons drifting in the Southern Hemisphere polar vortex during the Vorcore campaign of the Stratéole program reveal a peak with a frequency near 0.10 h−1, more than 25% higher than the inertial frequency at locations along the trajectories. Using balloon data and values of relative vorticity evaluated from the Modern Era Retrospective-Analyses for Research and Applications (MERRA), the authors find that the spectral peak near 0.10 h−1 can be interpreted as being due to inertial waves propagating inside the Antarctic polar vortex. In support of this claim, the authors examine the way in which the low-frequency part of the gravity wave spectrum sampled by the balloons is shifted because of effects of the background flow vorticity. Locally, the background flow can be expressed as the sum of solid-body rotation and shear. This study demonstrates that while pure solid-body rotation gives an effective inertial frequency equal to the absolute vorticity, the latter gives an effective inertial frequency that varies, depending on the direction of wave propagation, between limits defined by the absolute vorticity plus or minus half of the background relative vorticity.
Abstract
We present a new empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of winter 500 mb geopotential height anomalies in the Southern Hemisphere. An earlier EOF analysis by two of the present authors prefiltered the anomalies to exclude wavenumbers 5 and higher; we do not. The different preprocessing of data affects the results. All three distinct planetary flow regimes identified in the winter circulation of the Southern Hemisphere by a pattern correlation method are captured by the new set of EOFs; only two of those regimes were captured by the earlier set. The new results, therefore, lend further support to the idea that EOFs point to distinct planetary
Abstract
We present a new empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of winter 500 mb geopotential height anomalies in the Southern Hemisphere. An earlier EOF analysis by two of the present authors prefiltered the anomalies to exclude wavenumbers 5 and higher; we do not. The different preprocessing of data affects the results. All three distinct planetary flow regimes identified in the winter circulation of the Southern Hemisphere by a pattern correlation method are captured by the new set of EOFs; only two of those regimes were captured by the earlier set. The new results, therefore, lend further support to the idea that EOFs point to distinct planetary
Abstract
The current consensus is that drought has developed in the Sahel during the second half of the twentieth century as a result of remote effects of oceanic anomalies amplified by local land–atmosphere interactions. This paper focuses on the impacts of oceanic anomalies upon West African climate and specifically aims to identify those from SST anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Oceans during spring and summer seasons, when they were significant. Idealized sensitivity experiments are performed with four atmospheric general circulation models (AGCMs). The prescribed SST patterns used in the AGCMs are based on the leading mode of covariability between SST anomalies over the Pacific/Indian Oceans and summer rainfall over West Africa. The results show that such oceanic anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Ocean lead to a northward shift of an anomalous dry belt from the Gulf of Guinea to the Sahel as the season advances. In the Sahel, the magnitude of rainfall anomalies is comparable to that obtained by other authors using SST anomalies confined to the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean. The mechanism connecting the Pacific/Indian SST anomalies with West African rainfall has a strong seasonal cycle. In spring (May and June), anomalous subsidence develops over both the Maritime Continent and the equatorial Atlantic in response to the enhanced equatorial heating. Precipitation increases over continental West Africa in association with stronger zonal convergence of moisture. In addition, precipitation decreases over the Gulf of Guinea. During the monsoon peak (July and August), the SST anomalies move westward over the equatorial Pacific and the two regions where subsidence occurred earlier in the seasons merge over West Africa. The monsoon weakens and rainfall decreases over the Sahel, especially in August.
Abstract
The current consensus is that drought has developed in the Sahel during the second half of the twentieth century as a result of remote effects of oceanic anomalies amplified by local land–atmosphere interactions. This paper focuses on the impacts of oceanic anomalies upon West African climate and specifically aims to identify those from SST anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Oceans during spring and summer seasons, when they were significant. Idealized sensitivity experiments are performed with four atmospheric general circulation models (AGCMs). The prescribed SST patterns used in the AGCMs are based on the leading mode of covariability between SST anomalies over the Pacific/Indian Oceans and summer rainfall over West Africa. The results show that such oceanic anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Ocean lead to a northward shift of an anomalous dry belt from the Gulf of Guinea to the Sahel as the season advances. In the Sahel, the magnitude of rainfall anomalies is comparable to that obtained by other authors using SST anomalies confined to the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean. The mechanism connecting the Pacific/Indian SST anomalies with West African rainfall has a strong seasonal cycle. In spring (May and June), anomalous subsidence develops over both the Maritime Continent and the equatorial Atlantic in response to the enhanced equatorial heating. Precipitation increases over continental West Africa in association with stronger zonal convergence of moisture. In addition, precipitation decreases over the Gulf of Guinea. During the monsoon peak (July and August), the SST anomalies move westward over the equatorial Pacific and the two regions where subsidence occurred earlier in the seasons merge over West Africa. The monsoon weakens and rainfall decreases over the Sahel, especially in August.
Abstract
When sea surface temperatures are prescribed at its lower boundary, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) produces a realistic simulation of planetary boundary layer (PBL) stratocumulus cloud incidence. Despite this success, net surface solar fluxes are generally overpredicted in comparison to Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) derived data in regions characterized by persistent stratocumulus cloud decks. It is suggested that this deficiency is due to the highly simplified formulation of the PBL cloud optical properties. A new formulation of PBL cloud optical properties is developed based on an estimate of the stratocumulus cloud liquid water path. The January and July mean net surface solar fluxes simulated by the revised AGCM are closer to ERBE-derived values in regions where stratocumulus clouds are frequently observed. The area-averaged estimated error reductions range from 24 (Peru region) to 53 W m−2 (South Pacific storm track region). The results emphasize that surface heat fluxes are very sensitive to the radiative properties of stratocumulus clouds and that a realistic simulation of both the geographical distribution of stratocumulus clouds and their optical properties is crucial.
Abstract
When sea surface temperatures are prescribed at its lower boundary, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) produces a realistic simulation of planetary boundary layer (PBL) stratocumulus cloud incidence. Despite this success, net surface solar fluxes are generally overpredicted in comparison to Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) derived data in regions characterized by persistent stratocumulus cloud decks. It is suggested that this deficiency is due to the highly simplified formulation of the PBL cloud optical properties. A new formulation of PBL cloud optical properties is developed based on an estimate of the stratocumulus cloud liquid water path. The January and July mean net surface solar fluxes simulated by the revised AGCM are closer to ERBE-derived values in regions where stratocumulus clouds are frequently observed. The area-averaged estimated error reductions range from 24 (Peru region) to 53 W m−2 (South Pacific storm track region). The results emphasize that surface heat fluxes are very sensitive to the radiative properties of stratocumulus clouds and that a realistic simulation of both the geographical distribution of stratocumulus clouds and their optical properties is crucial.
