The Impact of Cut-off Lows on Ozone in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere over Changchun from Ozonesonde Observations

In situ measurements of the vertical structure of ozone were made in Changchun （43.53°N, 125.13°E）, China, by the Institute of Atmosphere Physics, in the summers of 2010-13. Analysis of the 89 validated ozone profiles shows the vari- ation of ozone concentration in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere （UTLS） caused by cut-off lows （COLs） over Changchun. During the COL events, an increase of the ozone concentration and a lower height of the tropopause are observed. Backward simulations with a trajectory model show that the ozone-rich airmass brought by the COL is from Siberia. A case study proves that stratosphere-troposphere exchange （STE） occurs in the COL. The ozone-rich air mass transported from the stratosphere to the troposphere first becomes unstable, then loses its high ozone concentration. This process usually happens during the decay stage of COLs. In order to understand the influence of COLs on the ozone in the UTLS, statistical analysis of the ozone profiles within COLs, and other profiles, are employed. The results indicate that the ozone concentrations of the in-COL profiles are significantly higher than those of the other profiles between ±4 km around the tropopause. The COLs induce an increase in UTLS column ozone by 32% on average. Meanwhile, the COLs depress the lapse-rate tropopause （LRT）/dynamical tropopause height by 1.4/1.7 km and cause the atmosphere above the tropopause to be less stable. The influence of COLs is durable because the increased ozone concentration lasts at least one day after the COL has passed over Changchun. Furthermore, the relative coefficient between LRT height and lower stratosphere （LS） column ozone is -0.62, which implies a positive correlation between COL strength and LS ozone concentration.

Gravity Wave Activity and Stratosphere-Troposphere Exchange During Typhoon Molave(2020)

To investigate the stratosphere-troposphere exchange(STE)process induced by the gravity waves(GWs)caused by Typhoon Molave(2020)in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere,we analyzed the ERA5 reanalysis data provided by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts and the CMA Tropical Cyclone Best Track Dataset.We also adopted the mesoscale forecast model Weather Research and Forecasting model V4.3 for numerical simulation.Most of the previous studies were about typhoon-induced STE and typhoon-induced GWs,while our research focused on the STE caused by typhoon-induced gravity waves.Our analysis shows that most of the time,the gravity wave signal of Typhoon Molave appeared below the tropopause.It was stronger on the east side of the typhoon center(10°-20°N,110°-120°E)than on the west side,suggesting an eastward tilted structure with height increase.When the GWs in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region on the west side of the typhoon center broke up,it produced strong turbulence,resulting in stratosphere-troposphere exchange.At this time,the average potential vorticity vertical flux increased with the average ozone mass mixing ratio.The gravity wave events and STE process simulated by the WRF model were basically consistent with the results of ERA5 reanalysis data,but the time of gravity wave breaking was different.This study indicates that after the breaking of the GWs induced by typhoons,turbulent mixing will also be generated,and thus the STE.

Retrieval of Upper Tropospheric Relative Humidity by the GMS-5 Water Vapor Channel:A Study of the Technique

This paper presents an analysis of a technique for retrieving upper tropospheric relative humidity through the GMS-5 satellite's 6.7-micron water vapor channel brightness temperature. NCEP analysis shows that a critical assumption of the retrieval theory, namely the constant temperature lapse rate, matches only in the tropical atmosphere. By statistical analyses of brightness temperature simulated by a radiative transfer model and of relative humidity, we examine the effect of lapse rate on this retrieval method and obtain retrieval parameters and error estimates applicable to the GMS-5 satellite over East Asia. If the retrieval parameters are properly chosen, the relative error of retrieving the upper tropospheric relative humidity in this region is less than 10%, and if applied to the low-latitude summer atmosphere, it is less than 5%.

Atmospheric boundary layer sources for upper tropospheric air over the Asian summer monsoon region

Previous satellite measurements and model simulations have shown that the Asian summer monsoon（ASM） anticyclone is co-located with higher concentrations of pollutants, which are emitted in the continental atmospheric boundary layer（ABL）. Backward trajectory calculations show that the air at the 150-hPa level has the maximum frequency of ABL sources within 30 days over the most intensive convection regions and their downwind areas, which are not located within the ASM anticyclone,but rather at the southern flank or periphery of the ASM anticyclone. The upper tropospheric airs originated from the ABL sources include two parts： one from the ocean, which has the dominant impact to the south of 20°N, particularly over the South China Sea（SCS） and the west tropical Pacific Ocean; and another from the continent, which is dominant between 10°N and 30°N, particularly over the Bay of Bengal（BoB）, continental India, the Arabian Sea, and the Arabian Peninsula. It is the latter part that forms the higher pollutant concentration within the ASM anticyclone as shown by satellite measurements. Air in the ABL sources（both polluted and unpolluted） converges to the intensive convection region in the lower troposphere, and then traverses the middle troposphere through a wide group of upward pipes, and finally to the upper troposphere. These pipes in the middle troposphere are defined by the ASM intensive convections and cover the south of continental India,the BoB, the Tibetan Plateau, the Indochina Peninsula, the SCS, and the Philippine Sea.

Upper-Tropospheric Environment–Tropical Cyclone Interactions over the Western North Pacific:A Statistical Study

Based on 25-year（1987–2011） tropical cyclone（TC） best track data, a statistical study was carried out to investigate the basic features of upper-tropospheric TC–environment interactions over the western North Pacific. Interaction was defined as the absolute value of eddy momentum flux convergence（EFC） exceeding 10 m s^（-1）d^（-1）. Based on this definition, it was found that 18% of all six-hourly TC samples experienced interaction. Extreme interaction cases showed that EFC can reach^120 m s^（-1）d^（-1） during the extratropical-cyclone（EC） stage, an order of magnitude larger than reported in previous studies.Composite analysis showed that positive interactions are characterized by a double-jet flow pattern, rather than the traditional trough pattern, because it is the jets that bring in large EFC from the upper-level environment to the TC center. The role of the outflow jet is also enhanced by relatively low inertial stability, as compared to the inflow jet. Among several environmental factors, it was found that extremely large EFC is usually accompanied by high inertial stability, low SST and strong vertical wind shear（VWS）. Thus, the positive effect of EFC is cancelled by their negative effects. Only those samples during the EC stage, whose intensities were less dependent on VWS and the underlying SST, could survive in extremely large EFC environments, or even re-intensify. For classical TCs（not in the EC stage）, it was found that environments with a moderate EFC value generally below ~25 m s^（-1）d^（-1） are more favorable for a TC＇s intensification than those with extremely large EFC.

Seasonal and Interannual Variations of Upper Tropospheric Water Vapor Band Brightness Temperature over the Global Monsoon Regions

The upper-troposphere water vapor (UTWV) band brightness temperature (BT) dataset derived from the High-resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) channel 12 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) polar satellites from 1979 to 1995 is used to analyze the seasonal and interannual variations for the global monsoon regions. Results show that (i) there are three major regions where the UTWV band BT varies significantly with season, i.e., South Asia, the western coastal South-North America tropical region and the low-latitude African region; (ii) UTWV band BT clearly reveals the water vapor temporal/spatial features as well as the atmospheric circulation structure over the low-latitude during the monsoon onset; and (iii) there is a remarkable relationship between the interannual variation of the UTWV band BT over the monsoon regions and the sea surface temperature anomaly in the eastern equatorial Pacific.

Wind rotation characteristics of the upper tropospheric monsoon over the central and eastern tropical Pacific

In this study, to investigate whether the variation of wind direction in the upper tropospheric monsoon over the central and eastern tropical Pacific shows similar characteristics to the classical monsoon region, the authors introduced a wind vector angle methodology that describes the size of the angle of the wind direction variation, as well as the directed rotary angle, which includes not only the size of the angle but also how the wind vector rotates. On this basis, the authors utilized and improved the directed rotary angle methodology to investigate the evolution of wind direction in detail, and the study confirmed the presence of the same four rotation features in the upper tropospheric monsoon region. Furthermore, the authors also identified the precise variation of wind direction in pentads with seasonal evolution, and found the onset time of the upper tropospheric monsoon may be earlier than the classical monsoon while the termination time may be later. The results further support and supplement the theory of global monsoons, which unifies the low-level and upper tropospheric monsoon as one monsoon system.

Features of Ozone Mini-Hole Events over the Tibetan Plateau

Based on TOMS total ozone data and SCIAMACHY ozone profile data, climatology of the ozone minihole events over the Tibetan Plateau and ozone vertical structure variations during an ozone mini-hole event in December 2003 are analyzed. The analyses show that before 1990 ozone mini-hole events only occurred in November-December of 1987 but that the number of events increases after 1990. These events only occur from October through February, with maximum occurrence frequency in December. During the event in December 2003, the decrease in total ozone of over 20% is mainly caused by the ozone loss in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region due to the horizontal transport of low ozone from the lower latitude subtropics and the uplift of low ozone from the lower troposphere over the Tibetan Plateau.

Barotropic Processes Associated with the Development of the Mei-yu Precipitation System

The barotropic processes associated with the development of a precipitation system are investigated through analysis of cloud-resolving model simulations of Mei-yu torrential rainfall events over eastern China in mid-June 2011. During the model integration period, there were three major heavy rainfall events： 9–12, 13–16 and 16–20 June. The kinetic energy is converted from perturbation to mean circulations in the first and second period, whereas it is converted from mean to perturbation circulations in the third period. Further analysis shows that kinetic energy conversion is determined by vertical transport of zonal momentum. Thus, the prognostic equation of vertical transport of zonal momentum is derived, in which its tendency is associated with dynamic, pressure gradient and buoyancy processes. The kinetic energy conversion from perturbation to mean circulations in the first period is mainly associated with the dynamic processes. The kinetic energy conversion from mean to perturbation circulations in the third period is generally related to the pressure gradient processes.

Climate Change in the Subtropical Jetstream during 1950–2009

A study of six decades（1950–2009） of reanalysis data reveals that the subtropical jetstream（STJ） of the Southern（Northern） Hemisphere between longitudes 0°E and 180°E has weakened（strengthened） during both the boreal winter（January,February） and summer（July, August） seasons. The temperature of the upper troposphere of the midlatitudes has a warming trend in the Southern Hemisphere and a cooling trend in the Northern Hemisphere. Correspondingly, the north–south temperature gradient in the upper troposphere has a decreasing trend in the Southern Hemisphere and an increasing trend in the Northern Hemisphere, which affects the strength of the STJ through the thermal wind relation. We devised a method of isotach analysis in intervals of 0.1 m s-1in vertical sections of hemispheric mean winds to study the climate change in the STJ core wind speed, and also core height and latitude. We found that the upper tropospheric cooling of the Asian mid-latitudes has a role in the strengthening of the STJ over Asia, while throughout the rest of the globe the upper troposphere has a warming trend that weakens the STJ. Available studies show that the mid-latitude cooling of the upper troposphere over Asia is caused by anthropogenic aerosols（particularly sulphate aerosols） and the warming over the rest of the global mid-latitude upper troposphere is due to increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Regional applicability of seven meteorological drought indices in China

The definition of a drought index is the foundation of drought research.However,because of the complexity of drought,there is no a unified drought index appropriate for different drought types and objects at the same time.Therefore,it is crucial to determine the regional applicability of various drought indices.Using terrestrial water storage obtained from the Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment,and the observed soil moisture and streamflow in China,we evaluated the regional applicability of seven meteorological drought indices:the Palmer Drought Severity Index(PDSI),modified PDSI(PDSI_CN) based on observations in China,self-calibrating PDSI(scPDSI),Surface Wetness Index(SWI),Standardized Precipitation Index(SPI),Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index(SPEI),and soil moisture simulations conducted using the community land model driven by observed atmospheric forcing(CLM3.5/ObsFC).The results showed that the scPDSI is most appropriate for China.However,it should be noted that the scPDSI reduces the value range slightly compared with the PDSI and PDSI_CN;thus,the classification of dry and wet conditions should be adjusted accordingly.Some problems might exist when using the PDSI and PDSI_CN in humid and arid areas because of the unsuitability of empiricalparameters.The SPI and SPEI are more appropriate for humid areas than arid and semiarid areas.This is because contributions of temperature variation to drought are neglected in the SPI,but overestimated in the SPEI,when potential evapotranspiration is estimated by the Thornthwaite method in these areas.Consequently,the SPI and SPEI tend to induce wetter and drier results,respectively.The CLM3.5/ObsFC is suitable for China before 2000,but not for arid and semiarid areas after 2000.Consistent with other drought indices,the SWI shows similar interannual and decadal change characteristics in detecting annual dry/wet variations.Although the long-term trends of drought areas in China detected by these seven drought indices during 1961-2013 are consistent,obvious differences exist among the values of drought areas,which might be attributable to the definitions of the drought indices in addition to climatic change.