Interannual Meridional Displacement of the Upper-Tropospheric Westerly Jet over Western East Asia in Summer

The interannual meridional displacement of the upper-tropospheric westerly jet over the eastern portion of East Asia in summer has been well documented.This study,however,investigates the interannual meridional displacement of the westerly jet over the western portion of East Asia in summer,which is distinct from its eastern counterpart.The results show that the meridional displacement of the western East Asian jet shows a clear asymmetric feature;that is,there are remarkable differences between the southward and northward displacement of the jet.The southward displacement of the jet corresponds to suppressed convection in the tropical western North Pacific and Maritime Continent and enhanced convection in the equatorial Pacific,which can be explained by the warmer sea surfaces found in the northern Indian Ocean and equatorial eastern Pacific.These tropical anomalies somewhat resemble those associated with the eastern East Asian jet variability.However,the northward displacement of the western East Asian jet does not correspond to significant convection and SST anomalies in the entire tropics;instead,the northward displacement of the jet corresponds well to the positive phase of the Arctic Oscillation.Furthermore,the meridional displacement of the western jet has asymmetric impacts on rainfall and surface air temperatures in East Asia.When the western jet shifts northward,more precipitation is found over South China and Northeast China,and higher temperatures appear in northern China.By contrast,when the jet shifts southward,more precipitation appears over the East Asian rainy belt,including the Yangtze River valley,South Korea,and southern and central Japan and warmer temperatures are found South and Southeast Asia.

Seasonal Variation of the East Asian Subtropical Westerly Jet and Its Association with the Heating Field over East Asia

The structure and seasonal variation of the East Asian Subtropical Westerly Jet （EAWJ） and associations with heating fields over East Asia are examined by using NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data. Obvious differences exist in the westerly jet intensity and location in different regions and seasons due to the ocean-land distribution and seasonal thermal contrast, as well as the dynamic and thermodynamic impacts of the Tibetan Plateau. In winter, the EAWJ center is situated over the western Pacific Ocean and the intensity is reduced gradually from east to west over the East Asian region. In summer, the EAWJ center is located over the north of the Tibetan Plateau and the jet intensity is reduced evidently compared with that in winter. The EAWJ seasonal evolution is characterized by the obvious longitudinal inconsistency of the northward migration and in-phase southward retreat of the EAWJ axis. A good correspondence between the seasonal variations of EAWJ and the meridional differences of air temperature （MDT） in the mid-upper troposphere demonstrates that the MDT is the basic reason for the seasonal variation of EAWJ. Correlation analyses indicate that the Kuroshio Current region to the south of Japan and the Tibetan Plateau are the key areas for the variations of the EAWJ intensities in winter and in summer, respectively. The strong sensible and latent heating in the Kuroshio Current region is closely related to the intensification of EAWJ in winter. In summer, strong sensible heating in the Tibetan Plateau corresponds to the EAWJ strengthening and southward shift, while the weak sensible heating in the Tibetan Plateau is consistent with the EAWJ weakening and northward migration.

Impact of the variation of westerly jets over East Asia on precipitation of eastern China in July

The impact of the northward jump and westward movement of the East Asian westerly jet core fi：om the westem Pacific Ocean to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau on precipitation distribution of eastem China is studied. It is concluded that on the one hand, the northward jump of the jet causes the precipitation belt to move northward from the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River valley and withdraw during the Mei-yu season; on the other hand, the westward movement of the jet core has no correspondence with withdrawal of the Mei-yu season. However, the earlier or later occurrence of the westward movement of the jet has an influence on the process of the rain belt moving northward than the northward jump of the jet： the rain belt moves northward from the middle-lower Yangtze River valley to the Huaihe River and then to an area between the Yellow River and Huaihe River during years when the time of the westward movement of the jet core is later than that of the northward jump of the jet and from the middle-lower Yangtze River valley to an area between the Yellow River and Huaihe River in other years. Further analysis shows that： （1） The northward jump of the jet and the westward movement of the East Asian westerly jet core causes significant variation of the general atmospheric circulation in middle latitudes and water vapor transport from the western Pacific, but not from the Bay of Bengal. （2） Impact of the northward jump and the westward movement of the East Asian westerly jet core on circulation are different, therefore, water vapor transport from the western Pacific and its impact on the rain belt are different. The earlier or later occurrence of the westward movement of the jet core than the northward jump of the jet causes the process of circulation and water vapor transport to be different which produces a different process of the rain belt moving northward.

Characteristics of South Asia High in Summer in 2010 and Its Relationship with Rainbands in China

The characteristics of the South Asia high (SAH) and subtropical westerly jets in the summer of 2010 and their relationship with the changes in rainband in China were analyzed. As shown by the results, the SAH in the upper troposphere extended northward relatively late in June 2010. Correspondingly, the subtropical westerly jets on the north side of the SAH jumped northward comparatively late, thus delaying the formation of a strong divergence field in the upper air over the Yangtze-Huaihe River valley. This was one of the main causes for the late onset of plum rains in the Yangtze-Huaihe River valley. In July, there was a vertical structure consisting of upper-level divergence and low-level convergence near the subtropical westerly jets on the north side of the SAH and in the air stream dispersal area on the northeast side of the eastward-extending SAH, which was the dynamic mechanism bringing about frequent and extremely heavy rainstorms during the plum rain period in this year. The SAH in the upper troposphere affected the subtropical high in the lower stratosphere, and thereby led to changes in the main rainband location in China.