SST effect on the pre-monsoon intraseasonal oscillation over the South China Sea based on atmospheric-coupled GCM comparison

The role of sea surface temperature(SST)variability in the pre-monsoonal(April to July)intraseasonal oscillation(ISO)over the South China Sea(SCS)is investigated using the Community Earth System Model Version 2(CESM2).An Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project(AMIP)simulation forced by daily sea surface temperatures(SSTs)derived from a parallel coupled general circulation model(CGCM)run was compared with observations and the mother coupled simulation.In the coupled model,the SST warming leads the peak convection about 1/4 period as in observations.The paralell uncoupled model fails to simulate this phase relationship,implying the importance of air-sea coupling in reproducing realistic ISO.Due to the near-quadrature phase relationship between SST and precipitation ISOs during the ISO events,it is difficult to distinguish the active/passive role of SST from observations alone.Significant correlation in intraseasonal precipitation between the daily SST-forced AMIP and mother CGCM runs indicates that SST plays a role in driving the atmospheric ISO.

Indo-Western Pacific Ocean Capacitor and Coherent Climate Anomalies in Post-ENSO Summer: A Review

ENSO induces coherent climate anomalies over the Indo-western Pacific, but these anomalies outlast SST anomalies of the equatorial Pacific by a season, with major effects on the Asian summer monsoon. This review provides historical accounts of major milestones and synthesizes recent advances in the endeavor to understand summer variability over the Indo-Northwest Pacific region. Specifically, a large-scale anomalous anticyclone （AAC） is a recurrent pattern in post-E1 Nifio summers, spanning the tropical Northwest Pacific and North Indian oceans. Regarding the ocean memory that anchors the summer AAC, competing hypotheses emphasize either SST cooling in the easterly trade wind regime of the Northwest Pacific or SST warming in the westerly monsoon regime of the North Indian Ocean. Our synthesis reveals a coupled ocean- atmosphere mode that builds on both mechanisms in a two-stage evolution. In spring, when the northeast trades prevail, the AAC and Northwest Pacific cooling are coupled via wind-evaporation-SST feedback. The Northwest Pacific cooling persists to trigger a summer feedback that arises from the interaction of the AAC and North Indian Ocean warming, enabled by the westerly monsoon wind regime. This Indo-western Pacific ocean capacitor （IPOC） effect explains why E1 Nifio stages its last act over the monsoonal Indo-Northwest Pacific and casts the Indian Ocean warming and AAC in leading roles. The IPOC displays interdecadal modulations by the ENSO variance cycle, significantly correlated with ENSO at the turn of the 20th century and after the 1970s, but not in between. Outstanding issues, including future climate projections, are also discussed.

Development Processes of the Tropical Pacific Meridional Mode

Mechanisms for the spatio-temporal development of the Tropical Pacific Meridional Mode （TPMM） are investigated using a coupled ocean-atmosphere model and observations. In both observations and the model, this meridional mode displays decadal variations and is most pronounced in spring and early summer. The model simulation suggests that once SST anomalies in the subtropical northeastern Pacific are initiated, say by northeasterly trade wind variability, perturbations evolve into a merdional dipole in 2 -3 months. A wind-evaporative-SST feedback causes a southwestward propagation of initial subtropical SST anomalies, while anomalous equatorial upwelling helps form the southern lobe of the meridional dipole. The TPMM development is a fast process （a few months） and depends on the seasonal cycle.

Changes in Mixed Layer Depth and Spring Bloom in the Kuroshio Extension under Global Warming

The mixed layer is deep in January-April in the Kuroshio Extension region. This paper investigates the response in this region of mixed layer depth （MLD） and the spring bloom initiation to global warming using the output of 15 models from CMIP5. The models indicate that in the late 21st century the mixed layer will shoal and the MLD reduction will be most pronounced in spring at about 33~N on the southern edge of the present deep-MLD region. The advection of temperature change in the upper 100 m by the mean eastward flow explains the spatial pattern of MLD shoaling in the models. Associated with the shoaling mixed layer, the onset of spring bloom inception is projected to advance due to the strengthened stratification in the warming climate.

Preface to the Special Issue “Unified Perspective of Climate Variability and Change”

Forty years ago, Klaus Wyrtki （1975） of University of Hawaii discovered that E1 Nifio warming off South America is not a result of local wind change but a response to the relaxed equatorial trade winds some 10 000 km away near the international dateline. The Kelvin wave mechanism was quickly verified from wind-forced ocean model simulations. Consequent develop- ments show that the dance between the fast-reacting atmosphere and slow-evolving ocean sets the pace of E1 Nifio-Southern Oscillation （ENSO; Philander, 1990）. The concept of ocean-atmosphere interaction has revolutionized our view of the climate system and led to operational climate prediction.

Zonal mean and shift modes of historical climate response to evolving aerosol distribution

Anthropogenic aerosols are effective radiative forcing agents that perturb the Earth’s climate. Major emission sources shifted from the western to eastern hemisphere around the 1980 s. An ensemble of single-forcing simulations with an Earth System Model reveals two stages of aerosol-induced climate change in response to the global aerosol increase for 1940–1980 and the zonal shift of aerosol forcing for 1980–2020, respectively. Here, using idealized experiments with hierarchical models, we show that the aerosol increase and shift modes of aerosol-forced climate change are dynamically distinct, governed by the inter-hemispheric energy transport and basin-wide ocean–atmosphere interactions, respectively.The aerosol increase mode dominates in the motionless slab ocean model but is damped by ocean dynamics. Free of zonal-mean energy perturbation, characterized by an anomalous North Atlantic warming and North Pacific cooling, the zonal shift mode is amplified by interactive ocean dynamics through Bjerknes feedback. Both modes contribute to a La Ni?a-like pattern over the equatorial Pacific. We suggest that a global perspective that accommodates the evolving geographical distribution of aerosol emissions is vital for understanding the aerosol-forced historical climate change.

Varying contributions of fast and slow responses cause asymmetric tropical rainfall change between CO_(2) ramp-up and ramp-down

Tropical rainfall is important for regional climate around the globe.In a warming climate forced by rising CO_(2),the tropical rainfall will increase over the equatorial Pacific where sea surface warming is locally enhanced.Here,we analyze an idealized CO_(2) removal experiment from the Carbon Dioxide Removal Model Intercomparison Project(CDRMIP)and show that the tropical rainfall change features a stronger pattern during CO_(2) ramp-down than ramp-up,even under the same global mean temperature increase,such as the 2℃ goal of the Paris Agreement.The tropical rainfall during CO_(2) ramp-down increases over the equatorial Pacific with a southward extension,and decreases over the Pacific intertropical convergence zone and South Pacific convergence zone.The asymmetric rainfall changes between CO_(2) ramp-down and ramp-up result from time-varying contributions of the fast and slow oceanic responses to CO_(2) forcing,defined as the responses to abrupt CO_(2) forcing in the first 10 years and thereafter,respectively,in the abrupt-4xCO_(2) experiment.The fast response follows the CO_(2) evolution,but the slow response does not peak until 60 years after the CO_(2) peak.The slow response features a stronger El Niño-like pattern,as the ocean dynamical thermostat effect is suppressed under stronger subsurface warming.The delayed and stronger slow response leads to stronger tropical rainfall changes during CO_(2) ramp-down.Our results indicate that returning the global mean temperature increase to below a certain goal,such as 2℃,by removing CO_(2),may fail to restore tropical convection distribution,with potentially devastating effects on climate worldwide.