Assessment of the Southern Ocean Sea Surface Temperature Biases in CMIP5 and CMIP6 Models

This work evaluates the performances of climate models in simulating the Southern Ocean(SO)sea surface temperature(SST)by a large ensemble from phases 5 and 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project(CMIP5 and CMIP6).By combining models from the same community sharing highly similar SO SST biases and eliminating the effect of global-mean biases on local SST biases,the results reveal that the ensemble-mean SO SST bias at 70°-30°S decreases from 0.38℃ in CMIP5 to 0.28℃ in CMIP6,together with increased intermodel consistency.The dominant mode of the intermodel variations in the zonal-mean SST biases is characterized as a meridional uniform warm bias pattern,explaining 79.1% of the intermodel variance and exhibiting positive principal values for most models.The ocean mixed layer heat budget further demonstrates that the SST biases at 70°-50°S primarily result from the excessive summertime heating effect from surface net heat flux.The biases in surface net heat flux south of 50°S are largely impacted by surface shortwave radiation from cloud and clear sky components at different latitudes.North of 50°S,the underestimated westerlies reduce the northward Ekman transport and hence northward cold advection in models,leading to warm SST biases year-round.In addition,the westerly biases are primarily traced back to the atmosphere-alone model simulations forced by the observed SST and sea ice.These results disclose the thermal origin at the high latitude and dynamical origin at the low latitude of the SO SST biases and underscore the significance of the deficiencies of atmospheric models in producing the SO SST biases.

Dimethyl sulfide in the atmospheric surface layer of the Equatorial Pacific Ocean

This paper reports a case study of atmospheric stability effect on dimethyl sulfide(DMS) concentration in the air. Investigation includes model simulation and field measurements over the Pacific Ocean. DMS concentration in surface sea water and in the air were measured during a research cruise from Hawaii to Tahiti. The diurnal variation of air temperature over the sea surface differed from the diurnal cycle of sea surface temperature because of the high heat capacity of sea water. The diurnal cycle of average DMS concentration in the air was studied in relation to the atmospheric stability parameter and surface heat flux. All these parameters had minima at noon and maxima in the early morning. The correlation coefficient of the air DMS concentration with wind speed (at 15 m high) was 0. 64. The observed concentrations of DMS in the equatorial marine surface layer and their diurnal variability agree well with model simulations. The simulated results indicate that the amplitude of the cycle and the mean concentration of DMS are dependent on the atmospheric stratifications and wind speed.

THE EFFECTS OF ROUGHNESS CHANGE ON THE SURFACE LAYER OF THE ATMOSPHERE(Ⅰ)--THE VARIATIONS OF WIND SPEED AND SHEAR STRESS

A general four-layer structure linear theory for predicting the effects of arbitrarily distributed roughness change on the variations of wind speed and shear stress in the surface layer of 3D and 2D atmospheres was presented.The results derived by the theory were agreeable to the previous ones.

Identification and Interpretation of Earth’s Atmosphere Dynamics’ and Thermodynamics’ Similarities between Rogue Waves and Oceans’ Surface Geostrophic Wind

In their daily practices, meteorologists make extensive use of the geostrophic wind properties to explain many weather phenomena such as the meaning and direction of the horizontal winds that take place around the low atmospheric pressures. The biggest challenge that faces the public who is interested in information disseminated by meteorologists is to know exactly what means the geostrophic wind. Besides the literal definitions scattered in very little scientific work, there is unfortunately no book which gives importance to the algebraic definition of the geostrophic wind. Our work shows that to better understand the behavior of natural phenomena, it is essential to combine the theories with based observations. Obviously, observations cannot be relevant without a theory that guides the observers. Conversely, no theory can be validated without experimental verification. Synoptic observations show that in the “free atmosphere!” the wind vectors are very nearly parallel to isobars, and the flow is perpendicular to the horizontal pressure gradient force, at least at any given instant. This kind of information recommends great caution when making geostrophic approximations. Our work also shows that for tornadoes, there is no need to move away from the surface of the oceans to observe the geostrophic balance. Undoubtedly, identification and interpretation of earth’s atmosphere dynamics’ and thermodynamics’ similarities between rogue waves and oceans’ surface geostrophic wind will be an easy exercise to researchers who will give importance to result provided by this paper.

Contrasting physical mechanisms of yellowfin tuna fluctuations between the western and eastern Indian Ocean

As an economically critical pelagic migratory species,yellowfin tuna(Thunnus albacores,YFT)is very sensible to physical and environmental conditions,such as sea surface temperature(SST),ocean heat content(OHC),and the mixed layer depth(MLD).We investigated the impact of SST,OHC,and MLD on fluctuations of YFT catch in the western/eastern Indian Ocean using the long time series of 63-year environmental and YFT datasets.We found that the impact of SST on YFT was heavily overestimated in the past,and MLD plays a more critical role in the YFT catch fluctuation.When the MLD deepens(>34.8 m),SST was more influential in predicting the catches of YFT than OHC in the western Indian Ocean,and OHC was more critical to YFT than SST in the eastern Indian Ocean.However,when the MLD shallows(<34.8 m),MLD was more vital to predict the catch per unit effort(CPUE)of YFT than SST/OHC in the western.After 2000,there was an asynchronous pattern of YFT CPUE induced by higher frequency variations and ocean hiatus of SST/OHC signals in the western and eastern Indian Oceans basins.The impact of the subsurface hiatus may induce the decrease of YFT in the eastern Indian Ocean.The above findings clarified a non-stationary relationship between the environmental factors and catches of YFT and provided new insights into variations in YFT abundance.

Using a Modified Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Scheme(MSPAS)to Simulate the Interaction between Land Surface Processes and Atmospheric Boundary Layer in Semi-Arid Regions

This paper uses a Modified Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Scheme (MSPAS) to study the interaction between land surface and atmospheric boundary layer processes. The scheme is composed of two main parts: atmospheric boundary layer processes and land surface processes. Compared with SiB and BATS, which are famous for their detailed parameterizations of physical variables, this simplified model is more convenient and saves much more computation time. Though simple, the feasibility of the model is well proved in this paper. The numerical simulation results from MSPAS show good agreement with reality. The scheme is used to obtain reasonable simulations for diurnal variations of heat balance, potential temperature of boundary layer, and wind field, and spatial distributions of temperature, specific humidity, vertical velocity, turbulence kinetic energy, and turbulence exchange coefficient over desert and oasis. In addition, MSPAS is used to simulate the interaction between desert and oasis at night, and again it obtains reasonable results. This indicates that MSPAS can be used to study the interaction between land surface processes and the atmospheric boundary layer over various underlying surfaces and can be extended for regional climate and numerical weather prediction study.

Wave breaking on turbulent energy budget in the ocean surface mixed layer

As an important physical process at the air-sea interface, wave movement and breaking have a significant effect on the ocean surface mixed layer (OSML). When breaking waves occur at the ocean surface, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) is input downwards, and a sublayer is formed near the surface and turbulence vertical mixing is intensively enhanced. A one-dimensional ocean model including the Mellor-Yamada level 2.5 turbulence closure equations was employed in our research on variations in turbulent energy budget within OSML. The influence of wave breaking could be introduced into the model by modifying an existing surface boundary condition of the TKE equation and specifying its input. The vertical diffusion and dissipation of TKE were effectively enhanced in the sublayer when wave breaking was considered. Turbulent energy dissipated in the sublayer was about 92.0% of the total depth-integrated dissipated TKE, which is twice higher than that of non-wave breaking. The shear production of TKE decreased by 3.5% because the mean flow fields tended to be uniform due to wave-enhanced turbulent mixing. As a result, a new local equilibrium between diffusion and dissipation of TKE was reached in the wave-enhanced layer. Below the sublayer, the local equilibrium between shear production and dissipation of TKE agreed with the conclusion drawn from the classical law-of-the-wall (Craig and Banner, 1994).

The Role of Barrier Layer in Southeastern Arabian Sea During the Development of Positive Indian Ocean Dipole Events

Using data from Argo and simple ocean data assimilation (SODA), the role of the barrier layer (BL) in the southeastern Arabian Sea (SEAS: 60°E-75°E, 0°-10°N) is investigated during the development of positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) events from 1960 to 2008. It is found that warmer sea surface temperature (SST) in the northern Indian Ocean appears in June in the SEAS. This warm SST accompanying anomalous southeastern wind persists for six months and a thicker BL and a corresponding thinner mixed layer in the SEAS contribute to the SST warming during the IOD formation period. The excessive precipitation during this period helps to form a thicker BL and a thinner mixed layer, resulting in a higher SST in the SEAS. Warm SST in the SEAS and cold SST to the southeast of the SEAS intensify the southeasterly anomaly in the tropical Indian Ocean, which transports more moisture to the SEAS, and then induces more precipitation there. The ocean-atmosphere interaction process among wind, precipitation, BL and SST is very important for the anomalous warming in the SEAS during the development of positive IOD events.

Large eddy simulation of turbulence in ocean surface boundary layer at Zhangzi Island offshore

This study uses a large eddy simulation （LES） model to investigate the turbulence processes in the ocean surface boundary layer at Zhangzi Island offshore. Field measurements at Zhangzi Island （39°N, 122°E） during July 2009 are used to drive the LES model. The LES results capture a clear diurnal cycle in the oceanic turbulence boundary layer. The process of the heat penetration and heat distribution characteristics are analyzed through the heat flux results from the LES and their differences between two diurnal cycles are discussed as well. Energy balance and other dynamics are investigated which show that the tide-induced shear production is the main source of the turbulence energy that balanced dissipation. Momentum flux near the surface shows better agreement with atmospheric data computed by the eddy correlation method than those computed by bulk formula.

Verification of an operational ocean circulation-surface wave coupled forecasting system for the China＇s seas

An operational ocean circulation-surface wave coupled forecasting system for the seas off China and adjacent areas（OCFS-C） is developed based on parallelized circulation and wave models. It has been in operation since November 1, 2007. In this paper we comprehensively present the simulation and verification of the system, whose distinguishing feature is that the wave-induced mixing is coupled in the circulation model. In particular, with nested technique the resolution in the China＇s seas has been updated to（1/24）° from the global model with（1/2）°resolution. Besides, daily remote sensing sea surface temperature（SST） data have been assimilated into the model to generate a hot restart field for OCFS-C. Moreover, inter-comparisons between forecasting and independent observational data are performed to evaluate the effectiveness of OCFS-C in upper-ocean quantities predictions, including SST, mixed layer depth（MLD） and subsurface temperature. Except in conventional statistical metrics, non-dimensional skill scores（SS） is also used to evaluate forecast skill. Observations from buoys and Argo profiles are used for lead time and real time validations, which give a large SS value（more than 0.90）. Besides, prediction skill for the seasonal variation of SST is confirmed. Comparisons of subsurface temperatures with Argo profiles data indicate that OCFS-C has low skill in predicting subsurface temperatures between 100 m and 150 m. Nevertheless, inter-comparisons of MLD reveal that the MLD from model is shallower than that from Argo profiles by about 12 m, i.e., OCFS-C is successful and steady in MLD predictions. Validation of 1-d, 2-d and 3-d forecasting SST shows that our operational ocean circulation-surface wave coupled forecasting model has reasonable accuracy in the upper ocean.

A sub-surface eddy at inertial current layer in the Canada Basin,Arctic Ocean

An Arctic Ocean eddy in sub-surface layer is analyzed in this paper by use of temperature, salinity and current profiles data obtained at an ice camp in the Canada Basin during the second Chinese Arctic Expedition in summer of 2003. In the vertical temperature section, the eddy shows itself as an isolated cold water block at depth of 60 m with a minimum temperature of - 1.5℃, about 0.5℃ colder than the ambient water. Isopycnals in the eddy form a pattern of convex, which indicates the eddy is anticyclonic. Although maximum velocity near 0.4 m s^-1 occurs in the current records observed synchronously, the current pattern is far away from a typical eddy. By further analysis, inertial frequency osci/lations with amplitudes comparable with the eddy velocity are found in the sub-surface layer currents. After filter the inertial current and mean current, an axisymmetric current pattern of an eddy with maximum velocity radius of 5 km is obtained. The analysis of the T-S characteristics of the eddy core water and its ambient waters supports the conclusion that the eddy was formed on the Chukchi Shelf and migrated northeastward into the northern Canada Basin.

OBSERVATIONAL STUDY ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RADIATION AND SURFACE ATMOSPHERIC BOUNDARY LAYER OVER ANTARCTICA

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Thermodynamic Feedback between Clouds and the Ocean Surface Mixed Layer

A cloud-ocean planetary boundary layer (OPBL) feedback mechanism is presented and tested in this paper. Water vapor, evaporated from the ocean surface or transported by the large-scale air flow, often forms convective clouds under a conditionally unstable lapse rate. The variable cloud cover and rainfall may have positive and negative feedback with the ocean mixed layer temperature and salinity structure. The coupling of the simplified Kuo's (1965) cumulus cloud model to the Kraus-Turner's (1967) ocean mixed layer model shows the existence of this feedback mechanism. The theory also predicts the generation of low frequency oscillation in the atmosphere and oceans.

The Influence of Convergence Movement on Turbulent Transportation in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer

Classical turbulent K closure theory of the atmospheric boundary layer assumes that the vertical turbulent transport flux of any macroscopic quantity is equivalent to that quantity's vertical gradient transport flux. But a cross coupling between the thermodynamic processes and the dynamic processes in the atmospheric system is demonstrated based on the Curier-Prigogine principle of cross coupling of linear thermodynamics. The vertical turbulent transportation of energy and substance in the atmospheric boundary layer is related not only to their macroscopic gradient but also to the convergence and the divergence movement. The transportation of the convergence or divergence movement is important for the atmospheric boundary layer of the heterogeneous underlying surface and the convection boundary layer. Based on this, the turbulent transportation in the atmospheric boundary layer, the energy budget of the heterogeneous underlying surface and the convection boundary layer, and the boundary layer parameterization of land surface processes over the heterogeneous underlying surface are studied. This research offers clues not only for establishing the atmospheric boundary layer theory about the heterogeneous underlying surface, but also for overcoming the difficulties encountered recently in the application of the atmospheric boundary layer theory.

Effects of Sea-Surface Waves and Ocean Spray on Air-Sea Momentum Fluxes

The effects of sea-surface waves and ocean spray on the marine atmospheric boundary layer （MABL） at different wind speeds and wave ages were investigated. An MABL model was developed that introduces a wave-induced component and spray force to the total surface stress. The theoretical model solution was determined assuming the eddy viscosity coefficient varied linearly with height above the sea surface. The wave-induced component was evaluated using a directional wave spectrum and growth rate. Spray force was described using interactions between ocean-spray droplets and wind-velocity shear. Wind profiles and sea-surface drag coefficients were calculated for low to high wind speeds for wind-generated sea at different wave ages to examine surface-wave and ocean-spray effects on MABL momentum distribution. The theoretical solutions were compared with model solutions neglecting wave-induced stress and/or spray stress. Surface waves strongly affected near-surface wind profiles and sea-surface drag coefficients at low to moderate wind speeds. Drag coefficients and near-surface wind speeds were lower for young than for old waves. At high wind speeds, ocean-spray droplets produced by wind-tearing breaking-wave crests affected the MABL strongly in comparison with surface waves, implying that wave age affects the MABL only negligibly. Low drag coefficients at high wind caused by ocean-spray production increased turbulent stress in the sea-spray generation layer, accelerating near-sea-surface wind. Comparing the analytical drag coefficient values with laboratory measurements and field observations indicated that surface waves and ocean spray significantly affect the MABL at different wind speeds and wave ages.

A Dataset of Global Ocean Surface Currents for 1999-2007 Derived from Argo Float Trajectories: A Comparison with Surface Drifter and TAO Measurements

A dataset of surface current vectors with error estimate from 1999 to 2007 is derived from the trajectories of the Array for Real-time Geostrophic Oceanography (Argo) drifting on surface over the global ocean. The error of the estimated surface currents is about 4.7 cm s-1 which is equivalent to the accuracy of the currents determined from the surface drifters. Geographically, the Argo-derived surface currents can fill many gaps left by the Global Drifter Program due to the greater number of floats, and can provide a complementary in situ observational system for monitoring global ocean surface currents. The surface currents from the Argo floats are compared with the surface drifter-derived currents and the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean program (TAO) measurements. The comparisons show good agreement for both the current amplitude and the direction of surface currents. Results indicate the feasibility of obtaining ocean surface currents from the Argo array and of combining the surface currents from Argo and the ocean surface drifters for in situ mapping of the global surface currents. The authors also make the dataset available to users of interest for many types of applications.

The response of the upper ocean to tropical cyclone Viyaru over the Bay of Bengal

Better forecast of tropical cyclone(TC) can help to reduce risk and enhance management. The TC forecast depends on the scientific understanding of oceanic processes, air-sea interaction and finally, the atmospheric process. The TC Viyaru is taken as an example, which is formed at the end of 11 May 2013 and sustains up to 17 May 2013 during pre-monsoon season. Argo data are used to investigate ocean response processes by comparing pre-and post-conditions of the TC. Eight oceanic parameters including the sea surface temperature(SST), the sea surface salinity(SSS), and the barrier layer thickness(BLT), the 26°C isotherm depth in the ocean(D26), the isothermal layer depth(ILD), the mixed layer depth(MLD), the tropical cyclone heat potential(TCHP) and the effective oceanic layer for cyclogenesis(EOLC) are chosen to evaluate the pre-and post-conditions of the TC along the track of Viyaru. The values of the SST, D26, BLT, TCHP and EOLC in the pre-cyclonic condition are higher than the post-cyclonic condition, while the SSS, ILD and MLD in the post-cyclonic condition are higher than the pre-cyclonic condition of the ocean due to strong cyclonic winds and subsurface upwelling. It is interesting that the strong intensity of the TC reduces less SST and vice versa. The satisfied real time Argo data is not available in the northern Bay of Bengal especially in the coastal region. A weather research and forecasting model is employed to hindcast the track of Viyaru, and the satellite data from the National Center Environmental Prediction are used to assess the hindcast.

Summer Persistence Barrier of Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies in the Central Western North Pacific

The persistence barrier of sea surface temperature anomalies （SSTAs） in the North Pacific was investigated and compared with the ENSO spring persistence barrier. The results show that SSTAs in the central western North Pacific （CWNP） have a persistence barrier in summer： the persistence of SSTAs in the CWNP shows a significant decline in summer regardless of the starting month. Mechanisms of the summer persistence barrier in the CWNP are different from those of the spring persistence barrier of SSTAs in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific. The phase locking of SSTAs to the annual cycle does not explain the CWNP summer persistence barrier. Remote ENSO forcing has little linear influence on the CWNP summer persistence barrier, compared with local upper-ocean process and atmospheric forcing in the North Pacific. Starting in wintertime, SSTAs extend down to the deep winter mixed layer then become sequestered beneath the shallow summer mixed layer, which is decoupled from the surface layer. Thus, wintertime SSTAs do not persist through the following summer. Starting in summertime, persistence of summer SSTAs until autumn can be explained by the atmospheric forcing through a positive SSTAs-cloud/radiation feedback mechanism because the shallow summertime mixed layer is decoupled from the temperature anomalies at depth, then the following autumnwinter-spring, SSTAs persist. Thus, summer SSTAs in the CWNP have a long persistence, showing a significant decline in the following summer. In this way, SSTAs in the CWNP show a persistence barrier in summer regardless of the starting month.

Analyses of structure of planetary boundary layer in ice camp over Arctic ocean

The vertical structure of Planetary boundary layer over Arctic floating ice is presented by using about 50 atmospheric profiles and relevant data sounded at an ice station over Arctic Ocean from 22 August to 3 September,2003.It shows that the height of the convective boundary layer in day is greater than that of the stability boundary layer in night.The boundary layer can be described as vertical structures of stability,instability and multipling The interaction between relative warm and wet down draft air from up level and cool air of surface layer is significant,which causes stronger wind shear,temperature and humidity inversion with typical wind shear of 10 m/s/100 m,intensity of temperature inversion of 8 ℃/100 m.While the larger pack ice is broken by such process,new ice free area in the high latitudes of arctic ocean.The interactions between air/ice/water are enhanced.The fact helps to understanding characteristics of atmospheric boundary layer and its effect in Arctic floating ice region.

Evaluation of Nonbreaking Wave-Induced Mixing Parameterization Schemes Based on a One-Dimensional Ocean Model

Surface waves have a considerable effect on vertical mixing in the upper ocean.In the past two decades,the vertical mixing induced through nonbreaking surface waves has been used in ocean and climate models to improve the simulation of the upper ocean.Thus far,several nonbreaking wave-induced mixing parameterization schemes have been proposed;however,no quantitative comparison has been performed among them.In this paper,a one-dimensional ocean model was used to compare the performances of five schemes,including those of Qiao et al.(Q),Hu and Wang(HW),Huang and Qiao(HQ),Pleskachevsky et al.(P),and Ghantous and Babanin(GB).Similar to previous studies,all of these schemes can decrease the simulated sea surface temperature(SST),increase the subsurface temperature,and deepen the mixed layer,thereby alleviating the common thermal deviation problem of the ocean model for upper ocean simulation.Among these schemes,the HQ scheme exhibited the weakest wave-induced mixing effect,and the HW scheme exhibited the strongest effect;the other three schemes exhibited roughly the same effect.In particular,the Q and P schemes exhibited nearly the same effect.In the simulation based on observations from the Ocean Weather Station Papa,the HQ scheme exhibited the best performance,followed by the Q scheme.In the experiment with the HQ scheme,the root-mean-square deviation of the simulated SST from the observations was 0.43℃,and the mixed layer depth(MLD)was 2.0 m.As a contrast,the deviations of the SST and MLD reached 1.25℃ and 8.4 m,respectively,in the experiment without wave-induced mixing.