Effects of Pacific Intertropical Convergence Zone precipitation bias on ENSO phase transition

In this study, the effect of mean precipitation bias over the Pacific Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) on the El Nino southern oscillation (ENSO) transition is examined using CMIP3 and CMIP5 archives. It is found that the climate models with excessive mean precipitation over the central/eastern Pacific ITCZ tend to simulate slower phase transition of the ENSO. This is because a wetter climatology provides a favorable condition for anomalously strong convective activity; the El Ni o-related convection anomaly tends to be increased over the central/eastern Pacific ITCZ with a local wet bias. This induces additional low-level westerlies over the central/eastern equatorial Pacific. As a result, the ENSO-related zonal wind stress anomaly over the central Pacific, which is south of the equator without the wet ITCZ bias during boreal winter, is shifted to the east, and its meridional width is expanded northward. It is found that both the eastward shift and northward expansion of ENSO-related wind stress can lead to slower ENSO phase transition as it takes longer time for the reflected Rossby waves to suppress the ENSO growth. This implies that the off-equatorial mean precipitation plays an important role in ENSO phase transition.open11810sciescopu

Intensification of terrestrial carbon cycle related to El Nino-Southern Oscillation under greenhouse warming

The El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) drives interannual variation in the global carbon cycle. However, the relationship between ENSO and the carbon cycle can be modulated by climate change due to anthropogenic forcing. We show herein that the sensitivity of the terrestrial carbon flux to ENSO will be enhanced under greenhouse warming by 44% (+/- 15%), indicating a future amplification of carbon-climate interactions. Separating the contributions of the changes in carbon sensitivity reveals that the response of land surface temperature to ENSO and the sensitivity of gross primary production to local temperature are significantly enhanced under greenhouse warming, thereby amplifying the ENSO-carbon-cycle coupling. In a warm climate, depletion of soil moisture increases temperature response in a given ENSO event. These findings suggest that the ENSO-related carbon cycle will be enhanced by hydroclimate changes caused by anthropogenic forcing.113Ysciescopu

Role of local air‐sea interaction in fire activity over Equatorial Asia

Fire activity in Equatorial Asia shows large interannual variability. Teleconnections by El Nino-Southern Oscillation and Indian Ocean Dipole are linked to drought and fire events; however, we found here that significant role of local Sea Surface Temperature (SST) over the Banda Sea in interannual variability of Equatorial Asian burned area in October even after removing the linear effects of teleconnections. October is the transient period from dry to wet season and strengthened seasonal circulation in October leads to a negative SST anomaly through Wind-Evaporation-SST mechanism. This anomalous local air-sea interaction sustains the dry season into October and stronger fire activity. Moreover, we found that the sensitivity of precipitation to SST is higher in October than in other months, hence fires in Equatorial Asia can be sensitively driven by local SST changes. Identification of this sensitivity will underpin better predictions of fire activity and air quality in Equatorial Asia.11Nsciescopu

Intensified Arctic warming under greenhouse warming by vegetation–atmosphere–sea ice interaction

Observations and modeling studies indicate that enhanced vegetation activities over high latitudes under an elevated CO2 concentration accelerate surface warming by reducing the surface albedo. In this study, we suggest that vegetation-atmosphere-sea ice interactions over high latitudes can induce an additional amplification of Arctic warming. Our hypothesis is tested by a series of coupled vegetation-climate model simulations under 2xCO(2) environments. The increased vegetation activities over high latitudes under a 2xCO(2) condition induce additional surface warming and turbulent heat fluxes to the atmosphere, which are transported to the Arctic through the atmosphere. This causes additional sea-ice melting and upper-ocean warming during the warm season. As a consequence, the Arctic and high-latitude warming is greatly amplified in the following winter and spring, which further promotes vegetation activities the following year. We conclude that the vegetation-atmosphere-sea ice interaction gives rise to additional positive feedback of the Arctic amplification.open1188sciescopu

Midtropospheric frontogenesis associated with antecedent indirect precipitation ahead of tropical cyclones over the Korean Peninsula

On the Korean Peninsula (KP), heavy rainfall often precedes the landfall of a tropical cyclone (TC). This rainfall is called antecedent indirect precipitation (AIP), because it occurs well beyond the effective radius of the TC. The present study examines the statistical characteristics and physical mechanism of the AIP produced by TCs that influenced the KP during the period 1993-2004. Composite analyses demonstrate that the AIP events were accompanied by midtropospheric frontogenesis due to the TC-mid-latitude environment interaction. When an approaching TC encountered an approaching mid-latitude upper-level trough, this encounter resulted in confluent and deformed flows at the mid-level by the combination of westerlies from the trough and southerlies from the TC. The delicate balance of horizontal winds related to the two systems at the mid-level led to the midtropospheric frontogenesis to the north of the KP. The frontogenetic feature related to the AIP was in marked contrast to those of the remote rainfall event over the KP and the predecessor rainfall event over the United States suggested by previous studies. Quasi-geostrophic analysis demonstrates that the midtropospheric front induced thermally direct circulation, which led to ascending motion over the KP. Consequently, the midtropospheric front helped to intensify the AIP, together with the convective instability that was amplified by the transport of warm and moist air along the conduit between the TC and subtropical high.open110Ysciescopu

Extensive fires in southeastern Siberian permafrost linked to preceding Arctic Oscillation

Carbon release through boreal fires could considerably accelerate Arctic warming; however, boreal fire occurrence mechanisms and dynamics remain largely unknown. Here, we analyze fire activity and relevant large-scale atmospheric conditions over southeastern Siberia, which has the largest burned area fraction in the circumboreal and high-level carbon emissions due to high-density peatlands. It is found that the annual burned area increased when a positive Arctic Oscillation (AO) takes place in early months of the year, despite peak fire season occurring 1 to 2 months later. A local high-pressure system linked to the AO drives a high- temperature anomaly in late winter, causing premature snowmelt. This causes earlier ground surface exposure and drier ground in spring due to enhanced evaporation, promoting fire spreading. Recently, southeastern Siberia has experienced warming and snow retreat; therefore, southeastern Siberia requires appropriate fire management strategies to prevent massive carbon release and accelerated global warming.11Ysciescopu

Extensive fires in southeastern Siberian permafrost linked to preceding Arctic Oscillation

Carbon release through boreal fires could considerably accelerate Arctic warming; however, boreal fire occurrence mechanisms and dynamics remain largely unknown. Here, we analyze fire activity and relevant large-scale atmospheric conditions over southeastern Siberia, which has the largest burned area fraction in the circumboreal and high-level carbon emissions due to high-density peatlands. It is found that the annual burned area increased when a positive Arctic Oscillation (AO) takes place in early months of the year, despite peak fire season occurring 1 to 2 months later. A local high-pressure system linked to the AO drives a high-temperature anomaly in late winter, causing premature snowmelt. This causes earlier ground surface exposure and drier ground in spring due to enhanced evaporation, promoting fire spreading. Recently, southeastern Siberia has experienced warming and snow retreat; therefore, southeastern Siberia requires appropriate fire management strategies to prevent massive carbon release and accelerated global warming

Role of Tropical Atlantic SST Variability as a Modulator of El Nino Teleconnections

The present study suggests that the off-equatorial North Atlantic (NATL) SST warming plays a significant role in modulating El Nio teleconnection and its impact on the North Atlantic and European regions. The El Nio events accompanied by NATL SST warming exhibit south-north dipole pattern over the Western Europe to Atlantic, while the ENSO teleconnection pattern without NATL warming exhibits a Rossby wave-like pattern confined over the North Pacific and western Atlantic. Especially, the El Nio events with NATL warming show positive (negative) geopotential-height anomalies over the North Atlantic (Western Europe) which resemble the negative phase of the NAO. Consistently, it is shown using a simple statistical model that NATL SSTA in addition to the tropical Pacific SSTA leads to better prediction on regional climate variation over the North Atlantic and European regions. This role of NATL SST on ENSO teleconnection is also validated and discussed in a long term simulation of coupled global circulation model (CGCM)

Two aspects of decadal ENSO variability modulating the long-term global carbon cycle

The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) drives variations in terrestrial carbon fluxes by affecting the terrestrial ecosystem via atmospheric teleconnections and thus plays an important role in interannual variability of the global carbon cycle. However, we lack such knowledge on decadal time scales, that is, how the carbon cycle can be affected by decadal variations of ENSO characteristics. Here we examine how, and by how much, decadal ENSO variability affects decadal variability of the global carbon cycle by analyzing a 1,801‐year preindustrial control simulation. We identify two different aspects, together explaining ~36% of the decadal variations in the global carbon cycle. First, climate variations induced by decadal ENSO‐like variability regulate terrestrial carbon flux and hence atmospheric CO2 on decadal time scales. Second, decadal changes in the asymmetrical response of the terrestrial ecosystem, resulting from decadal modulation of ENSO amplitude and asymmetry, rectify the background mean state, thereby generating decadal variability of land carbon fluxes