The Record-breaking Mei-yu in 2020 and Associated Atmospheric Circulation and Tropical SST Anomalies

The record-breaking mei-yu in the Yangtze-Huaihe River valley(YHRV)in 2020 was characterized by an early onset,a delayed retreat,a long duration,a wide meridional rainbelt,abundant precipitation,and frequent heavy rainstorm processes.It is noted that the East Asian monsoon circulation system presented a significant quasi-biweekly oscillation(QBWO)during the mei-yu season of 2020 that was associated with the onset and retreat of mei-yu,a northward shift and stagnation of the rainbelt,and the occurrence and persistence of heavy rainstorm processes.Correspondingly,during the mei-yu season,the monsoon circulation subsystems,including the western Pacific subtropical high(WPSH),the upper-level East Asian westerly jet,and the low-level southwesterly jet,experienced periodic oscillations linked with the QBWO.Most notably,the repeated establishment of a large southerly center,with relatively stable latitude,led to moisture convergence and ascent which was observed to develop repeatedly.This was accompanied by a long-term duration of the mei-yu rainfall in the YHRV and frequent occurrences of rainstorm processes.Moreover,two blocking highs were present in the middle to high latitudes over Eurasia,and a trough along the East Asian coast was also active,which allowed cold air intrusions to move southward through the northwestern and/or northeastern paths.The cold air frequently merged with the warm and moist air from the low latitudes resulting in low-level convergence over the YHRV.The persistent warming in the tropical Indian Ocean is found to be an important external contributor to an EAP/PJ-like teleconnection pattern over East Asia along with an intensified and southerly displaced WPSH,which was observed to be favorable for excessive rainfall over YHRV.

Cause of Extreme Heavy and Persistent Rainfall over Yangtze River in Summer 2020

Record-breaking heavy and persistent precipitation occurred over the Yangtze River Valley(YRV)in June-July(JJ)2020.An observational data analysis has indicated that the strong and persistent rainfall arose from the confluence of southerly wind anomalies to the south associated with an extremely strong anomalous anticyclone over the western North Pacific(WNPAC)and northeasterly anomalies to the north associated with a high-pressure anomaly over Northeast Asia.A further observational and modeling study has shown that the extremely strong WNPAC was caused by both La Niña-like SST anomaly(SSTA)forcing in the equatorial Pacific and warm SSTA forcing in the tropical Indian Ocean(IO).Different from conventional central Pacific(CP)El Niños that decay slowly,a CP El Niño in early 2020 decayed quickly and became a La Niña by early summer.This quick transition had a critical impact on the WNPAC.Meanwhile,an unusually large area of SST warming occurred in the tropical IO because a moderate interannual SSTA over the IO associated with the CP El Niño was superposed by an interdecadal/long-term trend component.Numerical sensitivity experiments have demonstrated that both the heating anomaly in the IO and the heating anomaly in the tropical Pacific contributed to the formation and maintenance of the WNPAC.The persistent high-pressure anomaly in Northeast Asia was part of a stationary Rossby wave train in the midlatitudes,driven by combined heating anomalies over India,the tropical eastern Pacific,and the tropical Atlantic.

Why Does Extreme Rainfall Occur in Central China during the Summer of 2020 after a Weak El Niño?

In summer 2020,extreme rainfall occurred throughout the Yangtze River basin,Huaihe River basin,and southern Yellow River basin,which are defined here as the central China(CC)region.However,only a weak central Pacific(CP)El Niño happened during winter 2019/20,so the correlations between the El Niño–Southern Oscillation(ENSO)indices and ENSO-induced circulation anomalies were insufficient to explain this extreme precipitation event.In this study,reanalysis data and numerical experiments are employed to identify and verify the primary ENSO-related factors that cause this extreme rainfall event.During summer 2020,unusually strong anomalous southwesterlies on the northwest side of an extremely strong Northwest Pacific anticyclone anomaly(NWPAC)contributed excess moisture and convective instability to the CC region,and thus,triggered extreme precipitation in this area.The tropical Indian Ocean(TIO)has warmed in recent decades,and consequently,intensified TIO basinwide warming appears after a weak El Niño,which excites an extremely strong NWPAC via the pathway of the Indo-western Pacific Ocean capacitor(IPOC)effect.Additionally,the ENSO event of 2019/20 should be treated as a fast-decaying CP El Niño rather than a general CP El Niño,so that the circulation and precipitation anomalies in summer 2020 can be better understood.Last,the increasing trend of tropospheric temperature and moisture content in the CC region after 2000 is also conducive to producing heavy precipitation.

Temporal and Spatial Characteristics of Summer Extreme Precipitation in Eastern China and Possible Causalities

In the past decades, with the increasing frequency of extreme weather and climate events, the world has suffered huge losses. Based on NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data and China regional precipitation data provided by China Meteorological Administration, the extreme precipitation events in eastern China are defined by relative threshold method, and the temporal and spatial characteristics of summer extreme precipitation in eastern China from 1961 to 2016 are analyzed by empirical orthogonal function (EOF), and the reverse distribution of extreme precipitation in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and south China by Indian Ocean warm pool is revealed influence. The results show that the total amount and frequency of extreme precipitation in summer are concentrated in the Yangtze River Basin and south China. EOF1 decomposition of extreme precipitation reflects the interannual oscillation characteristics of reverse spatial distribution in the Yangtze River Basin and south China. The time series corresponding to EOF1 has significant interannual characteristics. The Pacific-Japan (PJ) teleconnection pattern is a circulation system that significantly affects the spatial-temporal pattern of extreme precipitation in southern China. When the PJ pattern is in the positive phase, the anticyclone controls the south China region, and restrains the convective activity, which results in the decrease of extreme precipitation. The anomalous southwest wind to the south of 30°N and the anomalous northerly wind to the north of 30°N converge in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Combining with the sufficient water vapor carried by the anomalous southwest airflow at the edge of anticyclone, it is more conducive to the formation of extreme precipitation. The east propagating Kelvin wave in the warm pool of the Indian Ocean is an important reason for the formation of the PJ pattern and finally the formation of extreme precipitation anomalies in China.